Secure
by harmicnes
Summary: Katherine Hart had an oh-so normal life. But as moments go awry and her life gets turned upside down, she learns to lean on the friendships she’s made, finding that one in particular could’ve grown to much more. Remus/OC, background Jily [also on wattpad]
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, I just own my original characters and the plot for this story.**

Two young children gripped tight to one another's hand for support as they approached the seemingly normal brick wall. The two could have been seen as siblings had it not been for their differing hair colors and the pair of parents ambling along behind them. The two fathers pushed trolleys with two rather large trunks on them, as the two women beside them chatted amicably about their children walking in front of them, one holding a small toddler at her hip.

"Don't worry Kate. We're gonna get in there, and we're gonna rule the place," the young black-haired boy said to his best friend, who had an anxious look on her face.

The young girl took a deep breath, looking back at her mum and dad. "I suppose you're right James." A look of determination replaced her anxious look as she shared a mischievous smile with James.

"Katie dear, this is it. Why don't you and James go ahead first. Your father will bring your trunk." The middle-aged woman smiled sweetly at the two, motioning her head forward.

Nodding her head at her best friend and her family, the young brunette let go of the boy's hand, closing her eyes as she walked quickly through the wall of bricks. Opening her eyes, a beautiful scarlet red train came into view. The sky was a bright blue, a contrast to the gloomy grayish-blue of the England sky.

"Woah! Cool!" James had appeared at her side, also fascinated with the large train.

Katie turned her head, looking around at the rather large train station. There were families, some small, some large. There were a few kids as well, who appeared to be her age, and others who towered over her petite eleven year-old body. She spotted a rather glum looking family across the platform, all dressed in black. A young boy trailed behind the mother and father, his rather curly long hair covering up most of his face. She recognized him vaguely; she saw him once at one of the parties her mum threw.

Behind her father, Katie saw another young girl emerge from the wall, looking very anxious. She had very pretty red hair; it looked just like the curtains hung in her sitting room. Her eyes were also a bright green, which looked like the small meadow in her backyard. She turned her head to James and found him staring at the girl as well.

"Well kids, don't be too nervous. Hogwarts is bloody fantastic. And don't worry too much about which house you'll get sorted into, they're all great. Well, maybe Gryffindor's just a bit better, but don't tell your mum I said that." He winked at the two kids, who smiled brightly at him.

"William! What are you telling them?"

"Nothing dear!" He pushed the trunk forward, allowing his daughter to take one of the handles.

"You two best be off, the compartments can get rather full. And don't cause too much trouble," Mrs. Potter said, smiling warmly as the two.

The two young children said quick goodbyes to their parents, saying goodbyes to each other's parents too, seeing as they were practically second family.

They heaved their large trunks off of the trolleys, turning around one more time to wave their parents a goodbye before disappearing into the train. Many of the compartments were already occupied, so James and Katie opted to take the compartment nearing the back of the train.

Katie had already stepped in when she noticed the young boy looking out the window.

"Oh sorry, we thought this compartment was empty. If you don't mind, could we share the compartment?"

The boy turned around and gave her a nervous smile. His light brown hair was messy, but not as messy as James'. His eyes were an interesting shade of brown, reminding her of chocolate. What really struck her were the long scars across his face. There were a few gashes around his face, but one long one stretched from the top of his right eye to his left cheek.

"Y-Yeah, of course." His smile was more genuine this time, with less anxiousness. But she could still see his obvious anxiety in his eyes.

Stepping into the compartment, she and James put their trunks away quickly before sitting across from the boy. He appeared to have been watching them the entire time, extremely nervous about their presence.

"I'm Katherine Hart, but you can call me Katie." She extended her hand toward him giving him a friendly smile.

He stared her outstretched hand for a moment before tentatively shaking it, attempting a friendly smile of his own.

"I'm James Potter," James said, waving at the boy and giving him a grin.

Katie realized that she still didn't know the boy's name. "What's your name?"

"Remus Lupin."

"First years, come along. If you would all please follow me!"

Hogwarts was absolutely beautiful. The large castle was decorated with large paintings and other artifacts. The hall they were escorted to was rather huge with domed roofs and grey stone floors.

They were sorted into a line, alphabetically by last name. Katie remained with Remus, whose name was behind hers in the order. The aging lady that was escorting them looked rather strict and many of the children had remained silent.

"It's beautiful isn't it," she whispered to Remus, who was looking around in awe of the place. He merely nodded.

Suddenly, one of the large doors had opened, revealing another large room, even bigger than the hall they occupied. There were four tables all in rows, with students already sitting excitedly. There was a stool near the front center of the room, a rather dusty looking, old hat upon it.

The same lady, who introduced herself as Professor Mcgonagall, stepped next to the hat, carrying a small parchment with her.

"Sirius Black."

The boy she'd seen earlier stepped up to the stool. She remembered him now. Her mother had sometimes spoke of his family, the Black family. One of the most famous pureblood families in the Wizarding World.

He looked slightly anxious but seemed to remain calm.

"Gryffindor!" The hat had spoken loud and clear. Suddenly the hall came to a quiet silence, all staring at the young boy. He looked contemplative and confused, but the look in his eyes was one of slight fear. He ambled off the stool, making his way to the table clad in red.

"Katherine Hart."

Sitting down on the stool, she took a deep breath. She had only been on the stool for about 20 seconds when the hat bellowed loudly, "Gryffindor!"

Katie made her way down, sitting in the empty space next to the red headed girl she saw earlier.

"Remus Lupin."

She watched silently as he walked up to the stool as well, eyes downcast. He seemed frightened and nervous, more than he was on the train.

She hoped that he would get sorted into Gryffindor. They had become friends of some sort, her and James getting along well with the nervous young boy. After he loosened up and began to get more comfortable with them, he was actually a great person to talk to.

"Gryffindor!"

He ambled down the stool, taking a seat next to her. His face lit up in a smile, one that wasn't covered in nervousness, and she couldn't help but smile back at him.

Katie could feel eyes on her and she turned slightly, catching the eyes of Sirius Black. He looked somewhat conflicted, and, well, loney. Tentatively, she gave him a smile as well. She hadn't expected a smile back, so she was surprised when he sent her a shy grin.

"James Potter."

The hat barely touched his head when it yelled out a loud, "Gryffindor!"

Shooting up off the stool, he nearly tripped as he walked quickly to the Gryffindor table, a wide small on his face. He took a seat across from Katie, next to Sirius.

"Hey I guess our dads were right, Kate," James said to her, referring to their fathers' predictions that they would both be in Gryffindor. Katie nodded at him.

"I'm James," he said, turning to the long-haired boy.

That seemed to have broken the boy out of his conflicted state, reaching out his hand to James.

"Sirius," he said, with a grin on his face and a new sparkle of life in his black orbs as James shook his hand.

There was a tap on Katie's shoulder and she turned around to find the redheaded girl smiling at her with her hand outstretched.

"I'm Lily," She said brightly.

Katie took her hand and shook it. "I'm Katherine, but you can call me Katie."

Turning back to Remus, Katie grinned. "I guess we're friends now. And that also automatically makes you James' friend too."

"Really?" He seemed surprised, so Katie nodded at him, trying to reassure him.

"Then, I suppose so." Remus smiled back at her, feeling a small comfort from his newfound friend.

 _So I'm adding this chapter after I've already posted up to chapter 4. If you're new to this story, then you don't have to worry, just carry on reading. But if you already saved/read the posted chapters, then you should read this chapter._

 _Also, I'm aware that James sat with Sirius, Snape, and Lily on his first train ride, but just for the sake of the story, this happened instead._


	2. The Beginning

**Author's Note: Hello! Thank you for taking the time to read my story and I hope you enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the characters and plot associated. Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling and I do not own any part it except for my own original characters and plotline for this story.**

* * *

The familiar scarlet train was unmistakable the minute she set foot on the platform. The scent of train smoke reached her nostrils and she somehow felt an underwhelming comfort in the familiarity of it all—it was smell she'd come to associate with comfort and, in a slight way, home. There was a small chatter of voices to be heard as teenagers and parents milled around getting their affairs in order, some younger kids sounding more than excited as they held onto the hands of their parents tightly. However, the platform hadn't become too overly crowded yet as there was still a times to go before the train would be off, only a few families bothering to be early.

A fairly beautiful young witch turns to her family, who were just making their way towards her. The young witch's red clothing was in stark contrast to the family approaching, whom were all clad in cool tones. Anyone who turned their eyes to the family could obviously see that the family was of high class, as seen from the expensive looking clothes each family member was wearing. But the soft smiles and excitement looks on their faces had made them look less terrifying to those looking their way.

The mother, although wearing a classy black dress, gave off an aura of approachability, looking much less condescending as she stepped forward to her daughter, taking her in a warm embrace. "Oh Katie, you're growing so fast. Sixth year already!" She held her daughter at arm's length as she released her from the hug, beaming at the young girl. The slight sheen around her eyes had caught in the sun, and the girl she held in her arms reached over to hug her.

"Yes I know mum. You've told me this hundreds of times on the way here." The tone of her voice displayed frustration, but the smile on her face gave away her attempted indifference. Her father stifled a laugh before his wife sent him a glare, efficiently keeping him silent.

The young girl stepped back, examining her family, switching her focus of vision from her mother, father, and brother. "I'll take care of myself, I promise. Just take care of yourselves too." They were all aware of the growing dangers of the rising dark wizard, at least to some extent. Her younger brother was much too young to know the full details but he was informed of some.

"Of course Kate. Study hard and don't get into any trouble alright?" Her father had a wide grin on his face, trying to ease the conversation into a calmer topic. She grinned at him, knowing she would very likely get into some trouble along the way anyway.

"Katherine Hart! Is that my best friend I see?"

Speaking of Katie's cause of trouble, the family turned to their left to see James Potter approaching with his mum and dad, as well as Sirius Black. His hair was messy as ever as he nearly ran to Katie, holding his arms out to hug his childhood best friend. She enthusiastically reciprocated the hug, and it seemed as though the pair hadn't seen each other in ages, when in reality, they had seen one another just five days before.

"James!" The small, young boy was bouncing up and down, holing his hands out as well as James released Katie from a hug.

Crouching down, James scooped up the small boy into his arms. "Con, my buddy!"

Sirius had caught up with James now, bounding over to the family, his long black hair blowing around from the breeze. "Oi! I thought I was your best mate, James?" He faked a look of indignation, holding a hand to his heart and plastering a hurt expression onto his facial features.

Putting Conner down carefully, James turned to look at Sirius just as his parents had reached the Hart family, saying their greetings. "Oh dear Siwius, you know that I wub you," James had responded with a pout, copying Sirius' action. Katie merely rolled her eyes at their shenanigans. She could hear her parents chuckling behind her.

Once, her and James' parents had spent a few minutes catching up, she checked the small, ornate watch Remus had gotten her for a Christmas present last year. It would be 30 minutes before the train would be off.

Katie turned to her brother and crouched down to his height before speaking to the young boy. "Conner, I'll be going away for the year again so don't cause trouble to mum and dad alright?" The young boy nodded and reached over to give his sister a hug. Katie found the innocence of her little brother to be calming.

Standing up, Katie addressed her parents. "Well, we better get going before the compartments get too full."

Laughing as the two families bombarded the three teens with kisses, hugs, and waves, it took about another five minutes more until the three were finally seated on the train.

Fortunately it was still a bit early so there were many empty compartments to choose from. James easily found a compartment, one near the back of the train, and they slide their luggage into the designated luggage holders before getting comfortable. Sirius and James take seats next to each other as Katie sits across from them.

They fill each other in with details from their summer that they couldn't fit in to their short meeting at Diagon Alley just days ago as a way to pass the time.

Katie was shocked when they told her that Sirius had run away from his home permanently and moved in with James. But she couldn't be too surprised; she knew that Sirius' family was big on blood purity and that Sirius would eventually snap. She was suddenly very thankful that her own pureblood family didn't share the beliefs that Sirius' family had.

Katie told the boys of her vacation to Australia over the summer, which was evident from the slight tan her skin had gained. They were surprisingly very interested in the topic, as neither of the two had ever traveled outside of Europe.

Their conversation was interrupted as a tall, young man entered the compartment. The three already present recognized him instantly from his light brown hair and from the long scar across his face. However only two knew the story behind the scar. He was looking tired, as per usual, but a small smile was gracing his features.

Katie had been curious once or twice, but Remus had always told her that he'd gotten the scar at a young age when he was playing in the park and a dog had scratched him; that the scar hadn't completely healed since then.

"Remus, pal! How nice of you to join us!" Remus simply ignored Sirius and tended to putting his luggage away before taking a seat next to Katie.

As he sat down, Katie turned and placed her outstretched legs onto Remus' lap, an action that was a common occurrence between the two. "So, Kate, how was Australia?" Remus asked, purposefully ignoring Sirius' playfully hurt expression with a smirk.

Lying down, she lay her forearms over her head, thinking. "Bloody wonderful if I do say so myself. It was absolutely beautiful," she said, now propping herself up on her elbows.

"Well, that's great to hear," Remus replied, flashing her a smile of his own, which in turn made Katie smile even wider. Katie lay back down as she asked about Remus' summer.

"Oh, you know, same old same old. I reckon my mum's getting better." He was lying of course, his mother wasn't actually sick, but had to keep up his pretenses. In his nervousness, he absentmindedly began to play with the shoelaces of Katie's shoes.

Across from the two, the gears were turning inside of the heads of two black haired Marauders. They glanced at the pair in front of them, then back to each other, sporting identical mischievous grins.

The shrill whistle of the train echoed, declaring that the train would be off in a few short minutes. Sitting up, Katie turned her eyes to the window, spotting multiple families bustling to say goodbye.

"Well, I guess I should get going, Lily might be wondering where I am," Katie said, gingerly taking her legs off of Remus' lap and standing up.

"Say hello to dear Lily Pad for me!" Katie chuckled slightly, giving James a quick, "you got it James," before turning to Remus.

"Remus, I'll see you later to make our rounds," she said, reminding him of their prefect duties. He nodded and waved to her as she turned to the door of the compartment.

However, Peter Pettigrew had come bustling into the compartment right as Katie turned, accidentally knocking Katie over.

Remus, with his wolfish instincts, was the only one to spring into action on time, standing quickly and engulfing Katie in his arms before she could fall.

The two stood frozen for a second, locking eyes with one another before Remus carefully put Katie back down, a blush rising to his cheeks.

Katie straightened her shirt, which had gotten slightly crumpled, making sure to stand out of Peter's way.

"Alright I'll—uh—see you guys later," she said, the slight red tint still dusting her cheeks as she hurried out of the compartment.

Once she was out of earshot, Sirius turned to Remus. "So, Moony, anything you'd like to say about _that_?" He said mischievously, tilting his head in the direction that Katie had gone.

"What do you mean by, 'that' Padfoot?" Remus was obviously oblivious, causing the smirk on Sirius' face to grow wider.

"Oh you know, you and Katie-Pie seemed a bit lovey-dovey back there, with all that smiling at each other and looking into each other's eyes," James had now joined in with Sirius, having an almost identical smirk on his face.

"And, your heroic catch, of course."

Peter chipped in as well, pointing a finger towards Remus' face. "You're still red!"

"Dear Merlin, you lot aren't actually serious are you?"

"No, he's Sirius," James pointed to Sirius next to him, barely able to stifle a laugh at his own joke. Sirius and Peter though hadn't made any move to contain themselves, doubling over in laughter after spotting the exasperated look on Remus' face.

"Shut up Prongs, that was terrible," though the corners of Remus' mouth had turned up in a small smile. "Anyway, we weren't _looking into each other's eyes,_ and I was just doing the gentlemanly thing to do, I wasn't just gonna let her fall." Remus replied to James, imitating his earlier statement.

"Gentlemanly thing huh? Does that imply that you would catch any girl from falling, even if they weren't Katie?" All three eyes landed onto Remus.

"Well, yes, theoretically speaking," he said, shrugging.

A mischievous look entered Sirius' grey eyes. "Why, _theoretically speaking_ indeed."

* * *

Darting her head around quickly from the different compartments, Katie flicked her eyes about for any sign of red hair. Her eyes landed suddenly on a head of red peeking out from a compartment window.

Katie stepped into the compartment quickly. It was empty, except for Lily, and her belongings. Usually Severus would sit with the two, to Katie's disdain, as well as other Gryffindor girls whom were close enough with Lily and Katie. Upon entering, she spotted Lily's vivid red hair curtaining her face as her head was titled, engaged in the rather large book in her lap.

Sitting down across from Lily, Katie was still confused about the emptiness of the small compartment,

Lily looked up at her, her green eyes sparkling. "Katie! It's been so long!"

"How was your summer?"

"Oh it was well. The summer was rather relaxing this year. Tunie's got herself a new boyfriend, bloody pig he is. But he keeps her out of the house most of the time, always out on some fancy date. So it's been a relief. I did send you some letters over the summer but my owl always came back with it so I guessed that he couldn't travel all the way to Australia. How was your trip?" Expressions of disdain and amusement flicked across her facial features.

A small smile made it way into her face as she stared out of the large window, watching the green scenery go by. "It was great, the scenery was beautiful and it was nice to just relax. The beaches there were amazing. I'm sorry I didn't get to reply to your letters, but we'd left the family owl with the Potters." Katie looked at Lily apologetically. "Oh! And speaking of Potters, James wanted me to tell you that he says hello."

With a snort and a roll of her eyes, Lily opted to steer the topic away from the young man who had been vying for her affection for years.

"Wonder who our new DADA professor will be this year, you reckon he'll be a tosser like the last one?"

"If they're anything like Professor Dibblewit, we're in for a bloody terrible year. I don't even know how I'd managed to pass my Defense Aginst the Dark Arts O.W.L. with him teaching us."

"You've got a point. I know it sounds rather rude but I am glad Dumbledore had the wits to fire him. What ever was he thinking when he'd hired the man?"

Katie and Lily were now laughing as they both knew just how much each other had hated Professor Dibblewit. There were times in fifth year where they'd spent hours discussing how terrible of a teacher he was. After a while, they were able to calm their laughter and just continued conversing about whatever they'd found interesting.

"Well I better get going, I've got prefect duties with Remus," Katie said, checking the time.

"Okay, I'll see you at the feast then?" Nodding a goodbye, Katie left, walking back to the compartment she had been in earlier.

* * *

"First year Gryffindors, follow me! Careful, these stairs are rather tricky."

"This is the Gryffindor Common Room, and the lady on the door is the Fat Lady. You'll be giving her the password in order to enter. Passwords change weekly, so be sure to check the bulletin board for new passwords. You'll know what I'm taking about once you enter, the bulletin is pretty hard to miss." Katie looked out at the group of first years, waiting to see if she would get comments or questions. When none came, she nodded her head to Remus, telling him to continue speaking.

"Alright then, the password for this week is 'chocolate frog'," Remus said clearly to the group of anxious first years in front of him.

"Here, let me show you lot. 'Chocolate frog'," Katie said to the Fat Lady, showing the first years how they would be entering. It seemed easy enough to the first years, and the two prefects were glad that the Fat Lady obliged without causing a fuss.

The two prefects led the group inside, maneuvering them around the red-clad room. Once they got all the first years into the common room, showing them their designated dormitories, Remus and Katie opted to sit on the large sofa centered in the common room in order to wait for James, Sirius, Peter, and Lily.

Remus sighed, flopping down on the sofa next to Katie. He ran a hand through his hair, an action that Katie noticed he had been doing more often as of late. "They seemed a lot more nervous this year."

"I wouldn't blame them, I was a huge bundle of nerves my first evening here," she said, reclining back on the sofa.

Remus' face lit up in amusement. "Wait, you mean to say that, Katherine Hart, _the_ Katherine Hart gets _nervous_?" She glanced at him at the sudden joke, bursting out in a laugh. Katie playfully punched his arm as he just smirked at her, also realizing just how much he'd changed from the small young boy she met in first year.

Deciding to play along, Katie turned to him, eying him with her own mischievous grin. "Does the _infamous_ Remus Lupin ever get nervous himself?" Her voice oozed of sarcasm.

"Well Kate, in your six years of knowing me, I'm sure you know the answer to that question."

Katie pretended to contemplate the fact, placing her fingers underneath her chin as she stared at the ceiling. "Oh I'm not quite sure. Would you mind telling me the answer, Mr. Lupin?"

"Why, dear Ms. Hart, I think it's exceptionally obvious that I indeed _never_ get nervous." Trying to validate his point, he inched closer to Katie, giving her a smirk of his own. It wasn't often that Remus jokes around so freely, so Katie continued to play along.

Katie lost her composure for a second at his proximity. But she was unable to resist backing down from a challenge, so she inched closer as well, narrowing her eyes. She opened her mouth to speak-

"Well, well, WHAT do we have here?" At the sound of James' voice, the pair sprung apart, leaving a good two feet between them. The two were red in the face, turning an even deeper shade of red at the smirks on their friends' faces. Even Lily, who had apparently entered with the marauders, was sporting an amused expression.

Katie regained her composure quickly though, standing up. "Nothing, we were just talking." Remus, who was still sitting on the sofa seemed to snap back into reality as well.

"Yeah we were talking about our prefect duty schedule for this evening." He glanced at his watch. "Speaking of which, we should get going."

The pair walked out of the common room quickly, ignoring the complaints of their friends due to them leaving so quickly. A confused Katie followed Remus closely until they were on the other side of the common room door.

"What was that about? We have a good," she paused for a second checking her watch for the time, "a good 30 minutes before we have to be on duty." She looked up at Remus, who was nearly a head taller than her, easily towering over her own figure,

"Well, to be completely honest, I didn't want to have to deal with James and Sirius, considering, well um, what the situation would've looked to them." He scratched the back of his head and looked down at the ground, an action that Katie had seen him do many times when he was nervous. She understood his point though. She had known James for 12 years, Sirius for almost 6, and she knew just how much they'd love to tease her. She wondered just how much the marauders teased each other. Surely more than James teased her; she knew how boys could get.

"I thought Remus Lupin didn't get nervous?" Katie tried to ease the awkwardness with her joke, referring to their earlier conversation in the common room.

Remus stared at her for a second, shocked at how well she was taking this. Well she is Kate, if there was anyone who could make the best out of a situation it was her, he thought.

At that thought, he suddenly remembered a time from fourth year, on Valentine's Day. James and Sirius had wanted to play a prank on Katie, so they'd decided to charm her shampoo and body wash into turning her pink. Instead of mucking around and hiding in her dormitory, she charmed an old dress of hers to be Valentine's Day themed and stood in the Great Hall giving little Valentines sweets to those who passed by.

"Remember when James and Sirius turned you pink?" She burst out in laughter so loud that he had to shush her, reminding her that they were out roaming the castle when they weren't allowed to be out.

Wiping the corners of her eyes she managed to say something through her fits of laughter. "Sorry, I just - remember their faces when they saw me in the Great Hall? They were so unbelievably shocked."

"I do have to say, _that_ was one of your finest moments."


	3. Troubles of a Broom Closet

**Author's Note: This chapter is mainly just light and fluffy. But don't worry, this story will definitely have a plot to it that isn't completely centered around the romance, so it won't be all fluff. For now, I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, all rights go to JK Rowling. I merely own my original characters and the plot for this story.**

"Well if it isn't Loopy Lupin and KitKat! Out for a bit of a late-night stroll are we?" Suddenly startled by whoever had come to join them, the pair turned their heads, not finding a person in sight. "Yoo woo! Up here!" Lifting their heads slightly to the voice, the two found the unmistakable figure of Peeves hovering about them, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Why don't you go bugger off, Peeves," Remus said exasperated, throwing an annoyed look at the figure above. The last thing he needed that night was to have to deal with the irritable poltergeist.

"Oooo Lollypop wants some alonee time with Kitty!" Peeves chuckled mischievously, looking between the two, not once breaking eye contact. Katie had almost believed that he was just going to stay for the purposes of staring at the two before his high pitched squel echoed through the hallways, "Well I can help with that!"

Suddenly he became invisible, proofing away without a trace, simply leaving behind the air from which he hovered. Too overcome by confusion and mild annoyance, the two hadn't noticed the door to their right slowly open, not making a single creak. It was only when an invisible force knocked them into the open door that they were able to realize what had happened. The door was long shut by the time either one of them was able to stand from the crowded occupancy of the small closet.

The inside of the small closet was rather cramped, odd-shaped objects poking at their chests as the two were knocked to the floor in the mayhem of it all. There were broom bristles and other mysterious textures surrounding him. Too caught up with figuring what was touching his left arm, he hadn't realized that a something moving was located underneath him.

Through the dark closet he could make out brown locks and a moving hand as she rubbed her head. They had fallen rather close, nearly nose to nose. Snapping back into reality, he quickly stood up, careful not to step on Katie. Reaching down, he was able to just vaguely see her wavering hand and latching onto it, pulling her up quickly. Neither had expected just how small the closet was, being even smaller considering the mass of items piled up around them. Due to this, when Remus pulled Katie up, their faces were suddenly less than two inches apart.

Realizing the closeness, Katie attempted a step backwards to give the two more room, only to trip slightly on a small object. Luckily, Remus' reflexes won out for the second time of the day, and he engulfed her in his arms again before she fell backwards. Their faces were inches apart once again, and each felt something quite new, but deciding not to dwell on it as they put a bit more distance between themselves.

"Can you reach your wand? There's a shelf behind me and I can't reach mine."

Remus reached for his side pocket, feeling for his thin wand. "Lumos." The dark closet was illuminated slightly from the light exuding from the tip of his wand. Now that there was light within the room, the two suddenly realized just how close they really were. Remus' breathe stopped for a second as he could see every detail of her eyes, a brilliant, sandy chocolate color with the perfect amount of emerald green flecks.

He stepped back suddenly when she lowered her eyes slightly, snapping him out of his odd gaze. Turning towards the door, Remus attempted to focus on anything else but whatever unusual moment occurred between him and Katie. Attempting to turn the knob, he found that it was locked when the only sound that met him was the rattling of a locked door.

"Bugger," he mumbled under his breath.

A voice behind him spoke up. "What is it?" He turned his head toward her, finding that she was attempting to find a comfortable place to stand in.

Remus pointed slightly at the door behind him. "The door. It's locked."

"I figured."

Remus was about to go back to thinking up ways a frustrated groan came from Katie. An amused smile graced his face as he watched her poke angrily at a box on a shelf that kept slipping.

He chuckled at the way her face scrunched up in anger at the small box, and took a step forward, careful not to step on something fragile. "Here, I've got it," he said, reaching up and tucking the box safely back to where it should be.

Once he had put it back in place, Remus took a step back, realizing that Katie was nearly cramped into his chest with how small the closet was.

"Right so how do you reckon we get out of here?"

Katie turned her head slightly to the door inspecting it. "Have you tried Alohomora?"

A look of recognition made its way onto Remus' facial features. Turning towards the door, he pointed his wand at the small stub on the side that he knew to be the doorknob, reciting the incantation. He waited for the familiar click that meant it had been unlocked but no such sound came.

Shaking his head to indicate that the door was still locked, he turned to Katie. "He probably locked it from the outside. We won't be able to get out unless someone opens the door from the outside," she said, biting her lip slightly.

"We'll be here for a while then. Unless you want to start pounding on the door for help." Remus chuckled to himself as Katie cracked a smile.

Sighing, Remus sat on the stone floor, leaning his head against the wall. Realizing that they would be here a while, Katie followed suit, awkwardly cramping herself into the small space across from him. Noticing her discomfort, Remus moved his legs slightly to the left allowing just enough space for Katie to slide her legs out to a more comfortable position. The space was still very small and their legs ultimately ended up tangled with another as the two laughed at the situation.

"You know, James and Sirius will lose their minds if they ever found out that we got stuck in a broom closet together. I don't think we'd ever hear the end of it," Katie said as she threw her head back in slight laughter.

Hearing her laugh elicited a small chuckle from Remus as well, remembering how the status of their relationship was a topic of discussion earlier in the day. "That's _if_ they ever find out. They never have to know." Shrugging his shoulders, he spotted an amused expression, knowing full well that his three best friends would still manage to find out somehow.

From her side of the closet, a slight laugh sounded. It sounded different to Remus than what her laugh usually sounded like, higher in pitch and with a larger sense of carefreeness. After a couple of moments as she continued on with the unusual laugh, he realized that she was giggling. He'd never heard her giggle, at least not around him, but now that he'd heard it, he thought that it was rather melodic. He unknowingly began to smile softly at the girl across from him as her giggles began to cease.

Katie shook her head slightly. "I doubt that they won't find out. If we get found by a professor, we'll be sure to be a topic of gossip. You know how the rumor mill is around here." She looked to him and he nodded, remembering the multitude of rumors that had either surrounded him or his friends. He wasn't too surprised with how many different rumors there were of them, he knew quite well that they were a very well-known group to much of the population of Hogwarts.

"Remember when everyone was so sure that James and I were dating but that he was desperately in love with Lily? At least they got the Lily part right." A smile broke out on her face at the fond memory, not of the rumor itself but of the events that occurred afterwards.

"Well you _did_ run up and hug him after a quidditch game with the entire school watching." Remus remembered that moment well. He wasn't jealous or anything, but it was the first time in the four years he'd known James and Kate that he'd genuinely thought that they were dating or at least had some sort of romantic feelings for each other. "I mean, for a second, even I was convinced you were actually going to kiss him. And even before then, you were known as the closest pair of best friends in the school, it was only natural for some people to expect that you two would've eventually grown to have romantic feelings for each other."

Though it was dark, Remus could see a contemplative look on Katie's face. "Were you one of them?"

Taken aback, he had to blink a couple of tie to see if he had heard her right; Remus hadn't expected a question quite like that. "What?"

"Were you one of the people who thought that James and I would eventually end up together?" She clarified her earlier statement, a hint of curiosity to her tone.

"Well, up until nearing to the end of second year I was. You two were always so close and you two already knew nearly everything about each other, it just seemed like that's what everyone was expecting and there were good reasons behind their thinking. I used to think that one day you two would just finally walk down the halls holding hands or something, until I finally realized that you two really only saw each other as siblings."

"When did you realize it? That we only saw each other that way?"

"The summer before third year, my parents took me to a park. I saw two kids there, exactly like you and James, but with blonde hair. The two were so alike to you two that I found it almost odd. I overheard their parents call them when they were nearly leaving. Found out that they were brother and sister. Since then I realized that's really what you and James were, not best friends who would fall in love, but more, a brother and sister that had known each nearly their entire life, which you two almost are." He looked at her after he finished his explanation, and found that she was grinning.

"If only the gossipers of this blasted school would see what you see, I wouldn't have to be subject to so many glares from James' 'fans' in the hallways. I mean, we practically look related, he just has darker hair!" She lift up a strand of her hair, but found that the color was barely visible in the dark room.

"I do think that the amount of rumors about you two have gone down since that little stunt you and James pulled in fourth year." Remus let out a chuckle as he remembered the events of that day.

"I mean, as much as I knew Lily hated him at the time, it seemed as good as an opportunity as ever." Before that day, James had of course showed Lily his interest in her, asking her out almost every time he laid eyes on her. After that day however, much, if not all, of Hogwarts population was made aware of James' feelings for the redhead.

It was a day after the Quidditch Final, Gryffindor against Ravenclaw. Gryffindor had won, but it was the party that followed the match that started the planning of it all. Someone had spread the rumor that Katie and James had hooked up at the party, the rumor circling from different cliches. While the two had encountered their fair share of rumors, they'd never encountered one quite like that one, both with equally disgusted faces once they'd heard about it. Peter was the one to hear it first, he was grabbing a cup of punch when he heard some girls talking about it, rushing immediately to the two, partly to see if what he heard was correct and also to inform them of the rumor.

So the very next day, in the Great Hall, as the students of the school were chatting and eating their breakfast, a loud bang brought their attention to the ceilings. There they found a multitude of blazing orange fireworks, spelling out the words 'Hey Evans, will you go out with me?' brightly across the hall. James even dressed up in a nice robe and had Sirius dress as cupid. Instead of the yes he was hoping for, he instead got a hand, to the side of his face, hard.

Since then, the rumors about Katie and James had gone down, instead being replaced by rumors about James and Lily. Katie felt slightly guilty about it, seeing that Lily now took the brunt of glares from girls, not just for being the woman in James' eye, but also for slapping him across the face.

"Well I sure am glad I don't have as many first years asking me when James and I are going to get married anymore. I can't say that Lily is happy with how many glares she gets from girls though."

"They asked you when you were getting _married_?" A slight chuckle escaped his lips at the audacity of some of the first years.

"They did, yeah. It was rather funny sometimes. People stopped asking though, and I'm extremely glad they did. But you know, since the rumors about me and James have gone down, the amount rumors about me and Sirius or you and I have gone up," she said with a slight sigh.

Remus had, of course, heard them. He heard them sometimes when walking down the hall with Katie, the hushed voices and the eyeballs. He'd seen it with Sirius too, when the long-haired Black would sling an arm around her shoulder, or ruffled her hair. He can't say that he didn't see it coming, the reason they got so much attention from gossip was because they were, for a lack of a better word, popular.

Katie could easily be one of the most well-known girls in school, seeming like the it-girl to people who hadn't known her personally—beautiful, kind, extremely athletic, and as some girls say "without a flaw". Sirius was of course the most charming person you would ever meet, handsome and popular with the ladies. And while he was less outgoing than some of his friends, Remus knew that he'd earned crushes from some girls here and there.

"How's it feel then? Having to be the center of the glares from all the girls who are after James and Sirius?" He threw her a grin, watching as the corners of her lips turned upwards.

"Absolutely _treacherous_ I tell you. I reckon if they spent nearly all their time with those two, they wouldn't glare at me so often, maybe look with sympathy for having to deal with them."

"Hey, at least you have Lily to keep you sane. I'm stuck with them all the time."

"So do I help them make you go insane?" She smirked at him, watching his face become glazed over with realization.

"Oh no, no. You're the reason I've been able to _stay_ sane all these years," he said quickly after realizing what he had said earlier.

"I guess that makes me pretty special now don't it," she said smiling cheekily at him.

"Why yes, I suppose so." He suddenly looked contemplative, remembering a memory from years ago. "Actually come to think of it, there _has_ been one instance where it was you in particular that has brought on insanity."

"And what's that Remus?"

"Third year. The first Hogsmeade trip. After that day, I was so sure that if another male came up to us, I would've lost my mind."

Katie began to laugh rather loudly, her eyes watering. "There weren't _that_ many," she said as she attempted to calm her laughter.

"Twelve, Kate. _Twelve._ That's more than it was on Valentine's day!" He leaned his head backwards, finding her laugh to be contagious. "You know, maybe that's what started the veela rumors."

Katie let out a slight snort, making Remus laugh harder; it was a known fact that if you could get Katie laugh so much that she snorts, whatever you said was extremely amusing. "Dear Merlin, I have no idea _how_ they managed to come up with that one."

"After that day even _I_ thought it was plausible."

"Oh no, not you too," Katie groaned, rolling her eyes slightly as she laughed.

Remus merely shrugged. "I can't say that I've seen any female attract as many males as you have."

Leaning her head back against the wall, she allowed her laughter to die down. "I still have no bloody idea what they see in me."

"That's only because you don't see what they can see."

"And what do you see Remus?"

He blushed slightly, not expecting the question. "I—well, I—I see my best friend. Beautiful, intelligent, caring, and sometimes the worst person to be with because she has a terrible sense of humor, but you love every second with her anyway."

"Terrible sense of humor? I'm offended." Through the dark, he could see the playfully hurt look on her face, and let out a small chuckle.

Still laughing slightly, he took another jab at her. "Kate just take the compliment, it might be the only one you'll ever get from me."

"Remus, you and I both know that you compliment me every other hour."

Remus raised his eyebrows slightly, a disbelieving look on his face. "I do not!"

"Just an hour ago you were telling me how brilliant I was for how I dealt with that one prank from Valentine's Day."

"Okay, so maybe, I did compliment you quite a bit today," he said pausing, watching a triumphant look grace her face. "But I don't compliment you every hour, that's a bit of a stretch," he was quick to add as the grin on her face grew wider.

"Think what you will," Katie said, still grinning at him.

Katie began to move her legs, looking as if she was trying to find a more comfortable position to place them in. "Well, as much as I _love_ every second I spend with you," she said sending him a wink, "how do you think we'll get out of here? My legs are getting cramped."

Leaning up slightly, Remus looked around the closet for possible places where Katie could relocate her feet, but came up empty. The only way she might be more comfortable sitting down would be to sit on his lap, but the thought brought a large blush to his cheeks, deciding against voicing his thoughts.

She continued to shuffle around, moving her feet some more. "Sorry, my feet are falling asl—AH!" She jumped up quickly—so fast that Remus thought that she moved faster than lightning—leaning over to his side of the closet, but accidentally tripping over a box that she knocked over as she stood up.

She fell over Remus, knocking down some more boxes along the way, one accidentally hitting Remus on the head. Preoccupied with the box that hit his head, he wasn't able to catch Katie from falling straight into him. In an attempt to not fall completely head first into his chest, she held her hands out, her arms falling at Remus' shoulders. Unfortunately, the force of the fall was rather strong, so when Katie placed her hand on Remus shoulders, she accidentally forced his upper body to lie on the floor, hitting his head along the way.

Breathing heavily, Katie looked down at the position they landed in, blushing. She had him pinned to the floor, her legs somehow wound around his hips and her arms on his shoulders, his head slightly against the wall. She was about to apologize and stand when the door suddenly swung open, light flooding the dark closet.

Professor Mcgonagall stood at the door, at first looking cross, but upon looking at who was in the closet, her expression was replaced with shock. The sight that greeted her was a rather shocking one. Remus Lupin and Katherine Hart—two of her best students—were practically straddling each other, upturned boxes and brooms strewn around them,

"Mister Lupin and Miss Hart! What is the meaning of this?"

The two scrambled to their feet as quickly as they could without tripping over one another, standing in front of the professor red-faced and embarrassed. Both knew what the professor was thinking, and they knew that the state of the messy hair and wrinkled clothing weren't helping their cause.

"Professor it's not what it looks like. Remus and I were making our nightly rounds when Peeves came up to us. He caught us off-guard and shoved us into the closet while locking us inside, so we couldn't get out. I accidentally tripped over a box." Katie quickly explained to the professor what had happened. She spoke so fast that Remus was shocked that she hadn't tripped on any of her words.

"Very well Miss Hart. Do be more careful around Peeves the next time you make your rounds. Return to Gryffindor Tower as quick as you can. I am excusing you from prefect duty for the rest of the night to prevent further situations like this one." She eyed the two teens carefully before turning and walking down the hall.

Remus and Katie exchanged looks before running as quietly as they could to Gryffindor Tower. They didn't take time to talk, more focused on just trying to reach the common room without running into anyone else.

"Chocolate frog," Katie said, out of breath, as they finally reached the large portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Well, well. Where have you two been?" She eyed the two suspiciously, looking them up and down.

"Oh come on, just open up," Katie said, slightly impatient, running a hand through her hair.

"Alright, alright." Remus and Katie hurried into the common room, immediately flopping down on the sofa, trying to catch their breaths.

As the two regained their energy, they shared a look with each other, breaking into hysterical laughter.

"Did you see the look on her face? She was absolutely _horrified_!" Katie was now reduced to giggles as she continued to laugh.

"What made you jump so quickly anyway? Someone would've thought you'd seen You-Know-Who because of the way you screamed."

"Oh, well," Katie was no longer laughing as she shook her head and looked at the floor. "Well—there was a spider on me. I know, I know it's stupid but yeah." She looked at Remus sheepishly. This time it was Remus who burst into laughter. He was _hysterical_. Katie didn't think she'd ever seen him laugh so much. He was clutching his sides as his eyes began to water.

"Sorry, sorry, it's just- you're Kate, you jumped off a bloody tower once into freezing cold water in the middle of winter, _just because_ you wouldn't back down from a dare. And you're deathly afraid of spiders! Not that I'm blaming you, the things look bloody terrifying." This elicited a laugh from Katie and the just sat there, thinking over the events of the day.

"Well that was an eventful first day back, wouldn't you say?"

"Oh, definitely."

 **rewritten 7.21.18**


	4. Partners

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I only own my original characters and plot for this story.**

"As some of you may know from your headmaster's speech last night, I am your new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Professor Malvolio Tolbert."

Katie thought he'd seemed decent and he sounded like he had _some_ idea about he had some idea about what he'd be teaching. He definitely gave off the aura that he was not to be messed with, having sharp cheekbones and dark slicked back hair. He looked quite young as well; she deduced that he could be no older than 35 years old.

Looking around, she realized that many of the females in her class were smitten with the professor. The glances they sent to him made her quite uncomfortable, seeing as the age gap between them and the professor was bound to be greater than at least ten years. A source of comfort for her was that the professor wasn't egging these looks on, rather, just ignoring them. Turning her body slightly to her left to Lily, she was relieved to find that she didn't share the same look.

"He doesn't seem too bad," Lily said in a hushed voice when she saw Katie looking at her. "The girls seem to like him," she said voicing her observation.

The professor continued on, talking about the various topics they would be learning that year. He was obviously very knowledgeable about the topic, or at least looked prepared to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, which was a drastic difference from the wanker of a professor they had last year.

"To start off the year, I am assigning you a project that will be due in two months' time. This will be a partnered assignment, so I expect all of you to contribute to your part of the project." As he said the word 'partner' the room filled with hushed voices as students looked around at their friends in hopes of partnering up.

"Quiet down now. The project will consist of an essay as well as a visual presentation and model. You and whoever is to become your partner will research one of the Unforgivable Curses. Your model must be a functioning model, meaning that you must find a way for it to move, and shall depict what occurs under said spell. The essay must be written by _both_ of you. But I expect it to be written on a final draft by only one of the two of you."

The class was now deadly silent, the hushed whispers coming to screeching halt the second the word 'unforgivable' left the professor's tongue. Unforgivable Curses were a very touchy topic at Hogwarts, especially with the world they were living in today, with You-Know-Who on the rise. Many had looks of terror and anxiety on their faces, pale from fear and slight anxiousness. Professor Tolbert however, remained indifferent to these looks.

"I will be assigning your partners for this project, as I believe in the development of new relationships or furthering already existing relationships through communication and cooperation, which will be needed for this project to be completed. And do plan wisely, as you will have other assignments to do for this class as this project is taking place"

Katie could see some faces droop from the prospect of being assigned partners, but many were still very quiet and pale.

"Now, let's begin. Sirius Black will be paired up with Lily Evans."

A look of distaste made its way onto Lily's face. Katie knew that she still had a strong dislike for James and Sirius due to the way they had treated her then-friend Severus in the past. While she and Severus were no longer friends, Lily still hadn't forgiven the two, and Katie guessed that it was due to the fact that they still seemed very cocky and arrogant to the redhead, not maturing a bit from when they were young. Though Katie knew that to be false at least to some extent, she hadn't pushed Lily to change her views on her two best friends.

Sirius wasn't smirking like Katie had expected him to be. Instead, there was a small smile on his face as he looked to Lily, in hopes of getting on the red-haired witch's good side. His face was just as, or even paler than most and the smile on his face was shaky. Katie could also sense anxiousness from her long haired friend, and it made her wonder if the Unforgivable Curses had struck a bad memory in Sirius, causing her to grimace.

"James Potter and Alice Fortesque."

James smiled at Alice from across the room, having been on friendly terms with the brown-haired witch from his mate, Frank Longbottom. She smiled back, giving him a friendly wave as well.

"Remus Lupin and Katherine Hart."

Remus, who was sitting in the desk to the right of Katie, gave her a warm smile, which she kindly returned. Katie was happy with the circumstances, as she and Remus were very close friends—almost as close as she was to Lily and James—and had practically become best friends since being prefects together. She knew how he worked and he, in turn, knew how she worked.

The class went by quickly as he read the paired names off of a sheet of parchment, gaining mixed reactions from the various pairs. By the end of class the spirits of the class had risen dramatically, fueled by everyone either being excited or disappointed with who they were partnered with.

* * *

"How do you feel about the project?" Katie asked as she and Lily sat down in the two armchairs located at the one of the corners of the Gryffindor common room. Neither were particularly tired, but they had a feeling that this year would present itself too be far more difficult to handle than the year before from the difference of seriousness that was present in the teachers.

"Which part? The Sirius part or the actual project part?" Lily chuckled quietly, leaning her head back to rest on the soft cusions.

"Humor me," Katie said cheekily to her female best friend. It really was a miracle that the two were friends, let alone best friends. The pair was almost so incredibly different it was humorous.

Katie came from a pureblood family, while Lily was muggleborn. Katie was quite gifted at quidditch—though this was due to years of practice with James—and enjoyed the sport, while Lily was a terrible flyer that only went to matches for the sake of cheering on her best friend and supporting her house.

Then there were their differences in friendships outside of their own. Katie had been James Potter's best friend for as long as she could remember. Lily had been Severus Snape's best friend from the moment he'd approached her at the age of nine. It was just a coincidence that their two childhood best friends became sworn enemies from the minute they laid eyes on each other.

Yet here they were, despite the differences, from the moment they introduced themselves to each other in the first year dormitories having a bond that neither of their childhood best friends or their profound differences could break.

"Well the project will be quite difficult I think, for all of us, y'know with having to research and make a model of an Unforgivable Curse. I thought that the new professor was bloody mental when he mentioned that we had to create a moving model of one of the terrible spells. Like, what in Merlin's beard was he _thinking_?" Lily shook her head and looked at Katie, who urged her to continue.

"But then I went over the situation again and realized that while it might not have been the most sensitive way of presenting a lesson to sixth years, it probably will be the closest thing to experiencing one of the curses without any one of us actually experiencing them. Oh, I _hope_ that nobody will have to deal with the bloody terrible things!" Lily finished her explanation with a tone of sadness knowing that with the possible war creeping up on the Wizarding World that her hopes would very likely be crushed. Katie nodded her head in agreement, finding that all of Lily's points were valid.

"And Sirius?" Katie looked sheepishly at Lily, trying to ease the tension of the implications that a war in the Wizarding World would bring, and in hopes of keeping the conversation light.

"Don't even get me started with 'Wonderfully Huge Prat Number 2'," Lily said in exasperation and accompanied the comment with an eye roll.

"Oh he's not _that_ bad." Lily cast her an unbelieving look.

"Look I know that James annoys you to no end, and that Sirius does right along with him, being James' best mate and all. But he's really not too bad once you get past all the cockiness and smirking. He's quite a good guy when he drops the stupid act of his."

Lily sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Fine, I won't hex him the minute he tries to talk to me. But he better not expect me to do the entire project for him."

"Hey, well, if it gives you any reassurance at all, I've known James longer than Sirius has and I'm not a complete prat all the time now am I? I mean, you don't despise me. At least, I hope you don't." Katie smiled mischievously at Lily, which in turn caused the girl to laugh.

"So what about you? How's being paired with Remus sound?"

"Oh, you know, he and I are already good friends. I don't have to get over the massive hurdle that is _utter_ hatred." She smirked again, causing Lily to laugh even harder than before.

"Hm, you've got a good point. Also, I never did get to ask you what happened yesterday when I walked in here with the three doofuses."

Katie turned a slight red as she remembered the events that transpired the previous night. She suddenly wondered if he'd told anyone. What if he told James? Or even worse, Sirius _and_ James? Oh dear Merlin, she'd never hear the end of it.

"Nothing. We were just talking." Katie replied as calmly as possible.

"Really? I mean, you two were awfully close to be _just talking_." Lily wiggled her eyebrows at Katie. "Look I don't blame you. He might just be the only Marauder I can stand, and he's not entirely bad-looking either."

She was quite right. Remus had never been seen as the most handsome marauder, overshadowed by the quidditch star that was James Potter and his ridiculously handsome best friend, Sirius Black, who had half of the female population at Hogwarts swooning.

But, to Katie, his light brown hair—which looked bloody mesmerizing in the sunlight— chocolate brown eyes, and the way his mouth quirked upwards in a warm smile made him slightly more attractive than his more popular friends. Realizing what she'd just thought, Katie blushed scarlet. _Oh bloody hell. D_ _id she really just think that?_

She'd never really thought much about the subject. She didn't usually fret over teenage boys, at least not in a crushing way. She'd only had about maybe two or three crushes in her whole sixteen years of living, and none of them were ever really serious.

James found it unbelievable that she hadn't, given the fact that, much like Sirius and James, Katie was often a topic of attraction, the only difference being that those attracted to her were from the male population rather than the female. Somebody would think that for someone who was rather popular with the male population, that she would have taken even a slight interest in at least a few of them.

But despite that, she'd only gone on two dates—and out of those two dates, only one boyfriend—,a handsome fifth year Ravenclaw, Daniel Burke, who she often conversed with during prefect meetings, and Tyler Jones, a brunette Hufflepuff who she'd been partners with in potions.

Both dates went well, but there was just the one date between her and Tyler. As for Daniel, the two dated for about a month before mutually deciding that things weren't working out between them.

Well, technically, she also went on a 'date' with James when they were eight, because they always heard their parents talking about them growing up and getting married when they thought that the two kids couldn't hear them. So they decided to see what their parents were always on about, going on a nice little date that their parents helped arrange.

Needless to say, by the end of the night, the two were utterly disgusted to think that _they_ could ever like each other in _that way_ , and made a promise to never 'fall in love with each other' as they heard their parents say.

Realizing that she'd been lost in her thoughts for quite a while, Katie tried to change the topic. "Shouldn't we be meeting Remus and Sirius in the library?" Katie tried to divert the conversation to make up for her slight daze.

Checking the time, Lily remembered that they planned to meet in the library at half past six—the library would be a good 10 minute walk and it was nearly a quarter past six.

"Yeah we should go."

* * *

When they arrived at the library, they looked around for about 20 seconds before spotting the messy, black hair of James Potter sitting in a corner with the rest of the Marauders. They were talking quietly to themselves as James laughed at something Sirius had said.

It really was quite amusing, seeing the two biggest troublemakers at Hogwarts sitting in a small table at the library.

"Hey," Katie said upon reaching the table, reaching over to dishevel James' hair like she'd always done since they were little. Lily cautiously walked up to the table as well, standing next to Katie.

"Hello, Kit Kat." James smirked at her as she rolled her eyes. Remus introduced him to the chocolate treat back in first year. Since then, he'd call her that nickname every once in a while, knowing that it pissed her off to no end.

"Evans." He smiled to her as well, surprising Katie with how toned down he was, considering this was Lily he was talking to. She decided that she would have to interrogate him later.

James' eyes then looked past Katie's shoulders and she turned around to see Alice just walking in; Frank at her side. "Well, my partner's here. I'll see you lot later." With that he stood up, giving Katie a quick side hug before strolling towards the door of the library where Alice was standing.

Katie was too preoccupied with confusion at James' lack of interaction with Lily, seeing as for once he didn't have to seek her out to say something to the redhead. _What in the bloody hell was wrong with him? He's head over heels for her, but suddenly, he passes up a chance to talk to her?_ With that she made it her mission to find out whatever happened to James.

Lily raised her eyebrows to Katie, questioning her about James' display of affection. Katie merely shrugged, still in thought; it was a normal occurrence between the two.

Lily didn't know that of course, as she never hung out with Katie when she spent her time with the Marauders. Seeing that her best friend hated her other best friend, Katie quickly made an arrangement with her two friend groups, hanging out with either Lily or James on designated days or hours.

"Well we should get started." Katie said, addressing Remus. With that, Peter took that as an invitation to leave the table and left to find his partner. Sirius stood from his chair as well.

"Alright Evans, come on." Lily followed him to the table across from Remus and Katie, eying Sirius somewhat suspiciously as he sat.

"How long do you think she'll be able to stand him?"

"From my guess, not too long." The two looked over at the table once again and saw that Lily was glaring at Sirius as he smirked at her. She turned back to him, sitting straighter. "So, how do want to start?"

"Well, I guess we should start by choosing which curse we're going to do." He turned slightly solemn at the mention of said curses.

Katie bit her lip contemplatively, trying to think of the right way to do this. "Well, all three are equally as bad so it's not like we can just weigh the pros and cons." Remus nodded in agreement, also in thought. "Maybe we can just draw from a hat or something of th-" Katie was interrupted as Sirius rose from his chair, visibly upset.

Remus and Katie shared a look, deciding who would go after him. But to both of their incredible surprise, it was Lily who stood and followed Sirius out. Across from the library, Katie could see James attempting to stand to find his best mate as well, but seemingly deciding against it when he saw Lily follow Sirius out.

"Do you think he'll be fine?" She asked Remus softly, the worry in her voice evident.

"Yeah, I reckon the topic of the project just struck a nerve."He nodded absentmindedly, most of his focus still on the library doors. Katie frowned, realizing that her suspicions from earlier were correct. It suddenly dawned on Katie when she remembered who Sirius was related to. Bellatrix Lestrange, Narcissa Malfoy, and even his little brother, Regulus were suspected death eaters.

Shaking the morbid feeling the thoughts brought to her, she turned back to Remus. He was looking at Katie with a concerned look and she realized that she must have undergone another daze.

"Kate, are you okay?" His tone was so soft that some of the tension washed away. She smiled thankfully at Remus for his kindness.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." He smiled back, reassuring me that he didn't mind.

"So, are we going to do the hat thing? I don't think I have a hat with me at the moment though."

Katie looked around the library. Scanning the place, she could only find books, and more books. _How can a place have so many books?_ That was until she spotted a little container of quills on the other side of the table they were sitting in.

"That'll do it," she said as she stood up and grabbed the container. It wasn't too small and she could easily fit her hand inside.

Upon returning, Remus was already placing a small portion of parchment on the table. He ripped the parchment into 3 pieces as Katie emptied the container of its contents. Once Remus wrote the three curses on the parchment, he placed the pieces of parchment into the container.

"Do you want to pick it?" _Always the gentleman_ , Katie thought. She dipped her hand into the container and pulled out a piece of parchment. Written in Remus' slanted handwriting were the words 'Cruciatus Curse'.

"The Cruciatus Curse it is then," Katie said handing the piece of parchment to Remus. "Do you want to start researching today or do you to meet again tomorrow to start?"

"I think we should plan what we're going to do for the project today. Then tomorrow we can start researching."

They split the essay between themselves, assigning which parts each person would do, knowing that the other was a superb essay writer. Neither had any clue how to make the visual project move so they added that to the list of things that needed to be researched.

When Sirius and Lily came back into the library almost 15 minutes later, much of the tension that Sirius carried from earlier had seemed to disappear. What was even more surprising was that the two of them seemed to be on good terms now, almost like _friends_. Katie and Remus merely sent questioning glances to each other, easily communicating without words. They came to the decision to ask Sirius and Lily later on, and continued making plans.

Almost an hour later, Remus checked the time, realizing that they should head back soon, seeing that it was getting quite late. Lily left a while ago telling Katie that she would be heading back to the common room, while Sirius waited for James to finish up before taking their leave.

The two picked up their bags and gathered their things quickly before walking out the library. The halls were rather empty now that it was getting closer to night and many were heading back to their common rooms to retire.

Remus and Katie walked side by side, conversing amicably—well, that was, when they weren't laughing loudly, shushing each other even as they laughed—in no apparent hurry to make it back to Gryffindor Tower.

The two were very rarely alone, usually hanging out when Katie was with the Marauders, except for when they had prefect duties or during times like this. But when they were alone, it was very easy to make conversation, as Remus actually had a great sense of humor and Katie was already outgoing, able to keep awkward silences from making their way between the two.

Remus found that her laugh was like a perfect melody, and he got a weird, funny feeling whenever he was able to elicit a laugh from her. When she laughed she would throw her head back, her brown locks becoming messier, but it just managed to make her more beautiful in his mind. Caught up in their conversation, he shoved whatever he was feeling into the back of his mind.

It isn't until much later, when Katie declared that she was going to bed in order to be ready for the workload that they would be presented with tomorrow, and kissed all four Marauders on the cheek in her tired haze that Remus realized whatever it was that he was feeling. It dawned on him when his cheeks burned so bright at her little action that what he felt for Katherine Hart, was no longer entirely platonic.


	5. Realizations

For the next two weeks, the sixth year students of Hogwarts were, for a lack of a better word, swamped. Essays, lessons, potions, projects, and anything else teachers could come up with was placed on their plates.

The students of Hogwarts weren't known for getting their work done as soon as possible. In fact, they were known for quite the opposite, many of the student body being dutiful procrastinators, aside from the select few.

And many still were. Except for the select group that was assigned a particular project from the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. These particular students were mainly seen in the library and in their respective common rooms, pouring over books and parchment. It was quite the sight, seeing so many students working so hard on a project that wouldn't be due for another two month's time.

Even the infamous Sirius Black and James Potter, who were very rarely seen in the library, could now be seen at the said place every day.

They always met there at six, the Marauders and their respective partners. James with Alice sitting at the table near Frank's. Sirius and Lily somehow not glaring at one another but instead working almost fluidly, albeit the minor disagreements from time to time. Remus and Katie in their little corner table, working as they always have, with the occasional giggle, laugh, or blush. Peter and Dorcas, two of Gryffindor's biggest introverts having a hard time communicating with each other and seeing eye to eye.

It was strange yet amusing for Katie and Remus to have a front row seat to Lily and Sirius' sudden and growing friendship, which changed after that first night.

Remus heard the story right when the four had entered their dormitory that first night of the project. Katie heard it the following morning when she continued to pester Lily, who was reluctant to admit that she no longer held an animosity toward the young Black.

Sirius had gotten upset when they tried to decide what curse they would do for their project, zoning out for a good minute before standing up to leave. Lily had been quite irritated, thinking that he left because he hadn't wanted to work. But she told Katie that somehow, after thinking straight, she decided to go after Sirius. She found him in the closest empty classroom to the library.

His head was in his hands as he sat on one of the desks. Lily approached him carefully, suddenly realizing that maybe there was more to him than the arrogant prick she saw him as.

Sirius was shocked to see Lily; he hadn't been expecting anyone to follow, or if someone did follow, he expected James, not the girl who despised him just as much as she despised his best friend.

It had taken Lily several attempts to have him open up, Lily being quite impatient after the first two attempts. Sirius eventually told her about what bothered him so much. He told her about his family, and Lily began to see that maybe they had more in common than they thought.

After that night, Lily was less irritated with Sirius and as the weeks went on, they formed a small friendship from the hours they spent together in the library. During those weeks, the two became somewhat close, and had Lily had even begun to refer to Sirius by his first name. They'd even surprised Remus and Katie when they jumped up and gave each other a 'fist bump' as Remus told Katie.

What had confused Katie the most however was the lack of communication between her two best friends. Sure, their exchanges over the past years weren't exactly friendly, but they were there. Katie had seen her best friend be rejected nearly hundreds of times over the past six years; but still, he'd usually ask Lily on a date whenever he found a chance. It baffled her to see him pass up the chances he had over the two weeks.

It seemed though that they were both extremely busy. Katie couldn't get alone with James to ask him if everything was alright, seeing as they only now saw and talked to each other when with the Marauders.

Katie finally found an opportunity on a Saturday morning. Being the early birds that they were, they were the only two present in the common room at the early hour. James, was being incredibly stubborn that particular morning, continuously claiming that nothing was wrong. But she was equally as stubborn, getting him to finally cave and open up to her.

Reluctantly, he told her what had been bothering him all summer. Katie felt slightly bad about that, that she wasn't available when her best friend needed her.

"I just - I did a lot of thinking over the summer. After years of constant rejection, it starts to hurt after a while y'know?" He'd gone a bit tense, so she wrapped her arms around him in hopes of comforting him. "Well she said something particular to me the last time I attempted to ask her out. It made me think."

She could feel his sadness radiating from his words. While she'd known that James' feelings for Lily were quite strong, and that his attempts at asking her out were serious, and not a joke like Lily often ranted to her about; she realized then that James' feelings for her redheaded best friend went much deeper than she originally thought.

He continued on, sighing. "She told me that she would rather be friends with Snape again than ever go out with me. I mean, when the person you lov—er, _like_ tells you that they'd rather go back to being friends with a slimey git who called her the most derogatory term known to wizard kind, rather than go on one bloody date with you, it kinda makes you think."

"So, I thought I ought to lay off of asking her out for a while, or saying too much to her. I know that she thinks I'm some arrogant bastard that won't leave her alone, so I guess I'm just trying to grow up a little, show her that I'm not as immature as she thinks I am." He smiled sadly at her and lay his head on Katie's shoulder.

Katie rubbed circles around his back. "Where'd the immature little rascal I had for a best friend go? He's all grown up and mature now!" This caused both of them to laugh, easing the tension and tiredness that crept up on James as he told Katie his problem.

"Oh don't you worry, Kate. He's still very much the arrogant little prick he is. Just maybe not around that pretty Evans girl." He smiled sadly at his best friend. "But I sure am glad that I have such a nice best friend who makes me talk about my _manly_ feelings." A laugh escaped Katie's lips and soon James joined in with her.

It was odd, seeing James act so mildly around Lily. Katie found even Lily looking confused at his lack of well, asking her out. Lily tried to remain indifferent, but Katie could see the way her eyes took on a look of confusion whenever an encounter with James Potter had come and gone without him asking her on a date.

As for Remus, everything was just terrifying and confusing and he just didn't know where to start.

He realized it after that first night in the library, whatever he felt. He thought he was overreacting. He'd thought a few girls were pretty before, and Katie was definitely one of them. But as the weeks passed, he began to realize that whatever he felt, it wasn't going to fade anytime soon.

It happened in little moments, moments that most people wouldn't pay attention to.

Katie gasped out of the blue one day as she stared at the book she was reading, her eyes suddenly full of sadness. He didn't know how or why, but something in him had compelled him to reach out and take her hand. Her thin yet firm fingers had felt right in his calloused ones.

But she stared at their intertwined fingers for a few seconds too long, and Remus started to pull away, berating himself for being incredibly stupid.

As he started to pull away however, Katie held on tightly, springing out of her stupor and sending him a smile.

He felt the weird odd feeling again that day, as she held his hand in hers, with that bloody brilliant smile on her face.

After that, it was always in the little moments.

Sometimes he would look up from the book he was reading, glancing at Katie from across the table, her hair falling all around her shoulders, her hazelnut eyes flicking across the page. He found himself doing that often, having to quickly look away from her before she noticed.

Other times it was her laugh, or occasionally, her giggle. Or it was the way she joked with him, or James, or Sirius. Every single little moment felt different now.

He lay awake at nights, just mulling everything over. Sometimes he would smile remembering something about her.

But most of the time he spent thinking, he usually felt absolutely terrified.

It bloody scared him to death. He'd never had real strong feelings for a person before. He didn't want to be involved with anyone, seeing as he knew that he couldn't get married or have kids.

He often spent these nights laying awake, staring up at the ceiling with nothing but the sounds of snoring around him, wondering _what in Merlin's beard_ had brought on these strange feelings and just _willing_ them to go away, because being a werewolf was hard enough on him; he didn't need to have feelings for one of his best friends to make his life any more complicated.

But as the week progressed and he spent more time alone with Katie than he ever had before, he continued to get that feeling, relishing secretly in the little moments he spent with her, despite the protests of everything he thought logical.

He was a bit awkward around her at first, completely forgetting how to act around her since the development of his feelings. It was a bloody miracle that Katie hadn't noticed anything.

He sometimes found James and Sirius smirking at him whenever Katie came to join them. Lily even sent him a smirk once, when she caught him staring for too long at the brunette. It seemed that Katie was the only one oblivious to whatever he began to feel.

Remus was glad that his best friends hadn't confronted him yet. He was a damn right mess about what he was feeling for Katie. It reminded him of a ride his parents took him on once, when he was hardly 7. They decided to take him for a day of fun after the full moon, so they took him to an amusement park. They had him ride a small roller coaster called the 'Zig Zag'. Thinking back on it now, it really wasn't too bad, but to a young Remus, it was thrilling, amazing, but bloody terrifying.

As the weeks went by, most things returned to normal. With the rush of the first few weeks fading, the numbers of students in the library were beginning to dwindle. Quidditch season had begun and practices were crucial.

Some things had changed though.

Lily had started to hang out with Katie when she was with the Marauders, not finding the four as despicable anymore. Lily's and Sirius' friendship continued to grow, much to the agitation of James, as his relationship with Lily hadn't made much of a development.

One thing remained the same. The one thing that Remus Lupin never had to worry about ever changing.

The full moon was approaching and his weariness began to show. His face had gotten paler, which made the various scars on his face look more prominent. He had large bags under his eyes as well. To anyone paying attention, he's effectively become more quiet and reserved, aside from talking to Katie and the Marauders.

Katie had noticed. She asked him about it one day, as they worked in the library. He was working on the model, putting together the base when she voiced her concerns.

"Remus? Are you alright? You look a bit pale."

He looked up from the pieces of material he was working on and flashed her a weak smile. "I'm fine. Just feeling a bit under the weather. I've probably come up with a cold."

His usual bright eyes were now dull and tired. She noticed his scars again, but decided against asking about them again.

This time, it was her who reached out and grabbed his hand.

"Just, get some rest if you need it. You don't have to work on the project everyday," she said as she rubbed her thumb against the back of his hand absentmindedly, looking down at the table.

When she looked up, he found that his eyes were glued at their intertwined fingers and she wondered if she'd made him uncomfortable. She started to pull away when he grasped tighter onto her hand, just like she did with his just the week before.

Remus smiled at her—a genuine smile—and Katie couldn't help but smile back. Remus felt the warm feeling again, but little did he know, that Katie did too.

* * *

"Oi, Mckinnon! You look bloody dashing today!" Sirius smirked as the blonde turned a nice shade of red. James mumbled something under his breath before handing Sirius a galleon.

"Oh don't look so blue Prongsy, you should know by now that I can come up with a decent compliment for everybody. And honestly, you should've chosen someone harder to impress."

"I'm afraid Sirius is right James. That _was_ pretty stupid of you, betting against Sirius' charm when you bloody well know that he can charm the pants off of anybody, even Professor Mcgonagall. Poor choice too, what were you thinking, picking a girl for Sirius to compliment? You should've picked someone like Avery." Katie tutted at her best friend, which caused James to stick his tongue out at her, looking much like a 5 year old.

Looking amused at his friends, Remus spoke as well. "I'm gonna have to agree with Kate on that one."

"Moony! How could you?" Looking betrayed, James then turned to Peter. "You're on my side right, Wormtail?" James had somehow managed to smirk _and_ pout at the same time.

The boy in question merely looked at Sirius, Remus, and Katie across the table, then back at James before nodding his head at James.

"HAH!" James pointed at the three across from him.

"That's still three against two, James. See, Remus and Sirius here have _some_ brain cells. No offense Pete."

Peter just shrugged. "No, you're right. I should've sided with you guys."

Looking defeated, James murmured something under his breath. "Why in the bloody hell are we arguing about this anyway?"

Before Katie could come back with a witty answer, Lily had plopped herself down next to her.

"Hey Lils"

"Hello Katie," the redhead said. She then turned to address the rest of the people at the table. "Sirius, Remus, Peter, hello. And I guess hello to you too Potter."

"Still on a last name basis, are we Evans?" The smirk on his face was suddenly wiped away and replaced with a grimace as he glared daggers at something behind Lily.

"What do want, Snivellus?"

Katie could feel Lily stiffen next to her, refusing to turn around.

"Not everything involves you, Potter." He spit out his last word with such spite, it almost rivaled the poison in James' glare.

"What do you want?" Lily's tone was cold, and her glare was more frightening than James'. Snape recoiled from the harshness of her tone.

"Lily, I was just wondering if I could talk to you?" The anger in his voice was no longer there, being replaced with a soft, quiet voice.

"What could there possibly be left that you have to say to me?" Katie and the Marauders watched the exchange with wary eyes, not intervening yet.

"Well—I, I just wanted to-to t—um, ap-apologize again."

He started to stutter as the fire never left Lily's eyes.

"How many times are you going to try this?"

"Well I—"

"Oh bloody hell Severus! How many times do I have to say it? I don't _care_ how many times you apologize, the damage has been done. There is _no way in hell_ that I would _ever_ forgive you!" Lily was seething, her outburst gained the eyes of the entirety of the Gryffindor table, and several eyes from other houses.

Noticing the looks from the students, Snape began to look angry as he grew red in the face from embarrassment. Then he looked over to the Slytherin table where Katie could see Avery and Mulciber shaking their heads in disappointment. This seemed to have an effect on Snape. "Fine then, you _mudblood_ , I wouldn't want to be friends with someone as dirty as you," he spat.

That did it. Katie stood up abruptly and stood in front of Severus. She was a few inches shorter than the Slytherin but her glare was scarier than James and Lily's combined and Snape seemed to shrink, intimidated by the fiery brunette.

"Listen here Snape, don't you _ever_ call Lily _anything_ like that again. Better yet, why don't you take your cowardly arse and keep it out of Lily's life for good. She obviously doesn't ever want to see your face again, so why don't you go now while you still have your legs attached."

However, this seemed to anger the Slytherin even further. "Look how _courageous_ you are. Just as arrogant as Potter and Black."

"Severus why don't you just leave now." Those present at the table were all shocked to see who had spoken. They would've expected James, or Sirius, or even Lily to speak. But instead, the voice that spoke up belonged to Remus Lupin.

"Feeling a bit _sick_ now are we Lupin? I'm surprised you even have the energy to talk. Isn't it that time of the month ag—"

"Mister Snape!" Dumbledore was now making his way to the group, having seemingly approached them during the argument. "I'm afraid that for your incredulously inappropriate behavior, you will serve a detention tonight with your head of house. I suggest that you return to your table."

Dumbledore's words were calm but firm, and Severus quickly returned to the Slytherin table muttering under his breath.

"Miss Hart, I do have to say, that was a rather _passionate_ display, and caused quite the ruckus. But I think it was very courageous of you to stand up for your friend like that." Katie hung her head, expecting a detention as well. "10 points to Gryffindor."

Dumbledore smiled behind his half-moon glasses, already making his way back to the staff table when Katie fully understood what he just said.

Suddenly, a mane of bright red hair crowded her vision, and Lily's arms were around her.

"Merlin Kate, that was brilliant! Thanks for sticking up for me."

"You know I would do anything for you Lils."

When they let go, they turned back to the table finding a shocked James, an awestruck Sirius, a look from Peter that made Katie slightly uncomfortable, and a look of admiration on Remus' face.

"You know, if I wasn't so sure that Prongs would smack me upside the head or that Moony would be incredibly jealous, I would kiss you right now."

James however, did hit Sirius anyway, and with a decent amount of strength. At the sound of Sirius' pained "Ow!" The group broke down in hysterics.

Well, all except for Remus, who was so red in the face he looked like a plump tomato. Catching a glimpse at Remus,—who seemed to have lost all sense of movement—the group began laughing once again.

* * *

"Hey it's Katie, I just wanted to check in on Remus. I heard he was sick."

She knocked steadily on the door of the sixth year boys dormitory. Remus had been absent from all his classes today. While at lunch, she questioned the Marauders about the state of their friend, to which they told her that he came down with a bad cold.

Waiting expectantly at the door, Katie jumped when the door opened suddenly and out popped the head of James Potter. The door was still fairly closed, only opened wide enough for the boy to stick his head out.

"Kate! Why, it's so nice of you to visit. Moony's just resting."

"Is he okay?"

"Yeah, absolutely dashing. He's just, you know, tired." James bobbed his head up and down, and Katie looked at him skeptically.

"Okay... well I just wanted to check in. Oh! And tell him that Merideth and Devon are in the Hospital Wing from some allergies at the moment. They'll be released later, but Professor Mcgonagall wanted to let them have the rest. So they can't do rounds tonight. Mcgonagall wanted Remus and I to do them but just tell him that I have it covered."

James turned and yelled into the room. "You hear that Moony? Kate's got you covered!"

A muffled grunt was the response.

"Well, if that's all, you really should get going, Moony doesn't want to infect anyone with his sick stuff." With that, James closed the door, leaving Katie standing there, utterly confused about what had just transpired.

The corridor was empty and quiet, save for the soft pattering of footsteps on the cold, stone floor. The dark was only illuminated by the light of the full moon shining through the large windows.

Katie was quiet and contemplative, suddenly remembering something Snape had said the previous day.

'Time of the month'. What could he have meant by that?

Remus wasn't a female, so a period was out of the question. _Come on Katie, you're intelligent. It's there, the answer's there, just think._

Remus was sick, she knew that. She saw how tired and pale he was. But she also knew that James was lying to her. The boy was a bloody terrible liar.

Pale. Suddenly she remembered a time when he was 'sick' and pale. Come to think of it, he was often sick and pale. About every month.

The scars _had_ to mean something as well. A dog? No, she wasn't very familiar with the muggle pet, but she did know that dogs didn't have paws that big.

Every once a month, he gets pale and 'sick'. He has scars on his face that he doesn't want her to know the story behind. Wait, didn't James and Sirius call him 'Moony'?

 _Moony._ She was _so_ close to the answer. She could feel it. It was on the tip of her bloody tongue, and it frustrated her to no end.

Snape's words played over in her head. 'Time of the month'. That meant it was a monthly occurrence. So he got pale every month, and had scars he lied about. _Wait,_ in Defense Against the Dark Arts in third year. They were taught about w—.

A sudden noise threw off her train of thought. Footsteps.

Rounding the corner, she made sure to stay hidden behind the wall.

The corridor was empty. But how was that possible? There were footsteps, she was sure of it. She was about to write off the sound as a side effect of being tired, until she caught sight of a slight shimmering.

She knew that shimmering all too well. She and James would play with his invisibility cloak for hours on end during their childhood. She had been the one to spot the shimmer during a game of hide and seek.

Katie followed carefully, keeping an eye on the little shimmer while making sure not to create noise.

James, and whoever else was with him seemed to be making their way outside to the grounds. Upon reaching the door, He shrugged the invisibility cloak off. Suddenly James, Sirius, Peter, and.. Remus? appeared.

Katie made sure to keep to the walls and stay out of sight. She should tell them off for being out of bed but curiosity got the better of her. Normally, she would've thought that they were just setting up a prank, but something in her told her that they weren't.

She followed them outside. The air was cool and chilly since it was September. It wasn't too dark outside seeing as the full moon was illuminating the grounds.

She suddenly stopped in her tracks as she pieced the puzzle together.

Remus Lupin was a werewolf.

 _Okay, so that's chapter 4! Just a few quick notes: Yes, I'm aware that since James has the original Invisibility Cloak that it wouldn't give off a shimmer, but for the sake of the plot, it does. Also, I know that Katie took a really long time figuring out that Remus was a werewolf, but to make it believable, she couldn't have realized right away. More of why it took her so long to figure out will be in the next chapter. It was just a sort of blank out on her part in this chapter about the werewolf situation. It's also been about 2-3 weeks since they started school._

 _Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter, and don't forget to review!_


	6. Wounds

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, I only own my original characters and plot for this story.**

Remus was a werewolf.

How hadn't she noticed? She knew Remus for _six_ years and nothing had ever come up as suspicious. Well except for his scars. But after questioning him twice already, it didn't seem like her place to pry.

She tried to remember anything that could've hinted at his lycanthropy. Now that she thought about it, it would've been so obvious to anyone paying attention. He always visited his sick mother, monthly. But she always thought that it was because he couldn't afford to go more than once a month, seeing as he still had his studies to work on. But she still didn't _bloody_ notice.

She remembered his nickname given to him by Sirius, James and Peter. Moony, that must mean full moon. The nickname was clever, she had to give them that.

James was Prongs, Sirius was Padfoot, Peter was Wormtail. What could those mean?

Better yet, how did James manage not to let anything slip? He was a bloody terrible liar.

Well, now looking back, she never really asked many questions seeing as she didn't have any suspicions.

She remembered vaguely of an essay pertaining to werewolves that she wrote in third year. She got an Outstanding on the bloody paper. How hadn't she seen the signs? Oh dear _Merlin._ She had never felt so incredibly stupid and unobservant in her life.

Before she could continue her internal conflict and debate however, she realized that the four boys were now farther away, standing in front of the Whomping Willow.

It's branches thrashed and bellowed in the night, but somehow didn't cause a disruption. The branches had grown quite a lot from when she first spotted the rather gigantic tree back in her first year. The tree now towered over most of the trees around it.

She blinked and suddenly Peter was no longer with the three boys. Within a few seconds, the branches of the Whomping Willow had slowed to a stop, allowing the three remaining boys to shimmy underneath the tree's roots, disappearing as well.

Curiosity overtaking Katie, she stepped forward to the tree cautiously, inspecting the movement of its branches. They were still, incredibly still. She waited a good five minutes before repeating the movements of the Marauders.

Once underneath the tree, she landed in a sort of passageway. It seemed to have been hand carved from the imperfect roundness of the passage. The dirt was damp, causing the smell of Earth to formulate. It was rather small, possibly no bigger than five feet in height.

She could hear footsteps, though they were ahead of her by at least a quarter mile. She waited until the footsteps became a dull patter before she followed the sound.

The trek must've taken her about 30 minutes, her back starting to ache halfway through the journey from the need to bend forward as to not bump her head.

She almost began to think that maybe there was no end to the tunnel. But soon enough, as Katie neared what seemed to be the end of the passageway, she began to hear a low growling. There were also little fragments of light showing through.

The sound reminded her of the full moon. Katie stopped in her tracks.

If Remus is going to transform tonight, why are James, Sirius, and Peter with him? Don't they know that they could get bitten?

The thought made her more anxious and she quickly hurried toward the end of the tunnel.

Cautiously, she crept into a small room. The entire place was made of wood, seeming fragile. But upon inspection, the place was rather well-built and secure.

There were cobwebs and dust milling through the air causing her to shudder at the thought of the eight-legged creatures.

The wood lining the walls was dark colored, reminding her of a familiar place with the same color of wood. She couldn't quite remember the place at the time though. Scratch marks were all over the walls and floors. They were obviously made by something big, as seen from the size of the scratches.

A loud howl penetrated the silent night and she stepped further into the building. A loud thrashing was coming from the room in front of her, shaking the little shack.

She wrapped her fingers around the cold metal doorknob, her wand in her right hand. She took a quick breath and closed her eyes.

Upon opening the door, a large black dog was suddenly thrown against the wall adjacent to her.

Katie froze.

Standing a few feet away from her was the long, hairy body of a werewolf. _Remus_. He looked quite large, she was guessing that the werewolf was just a few inches taller than Remus in human form.

He was faced toward her, and the only recognizable feature of the wolf's face was his eyes. They were still Remus' chocolate brown eyes, flecked with hints of gold and honey.

She broke out of her stupor when a large stag jumped in front of her, his antlers keeping Remus from reaching her. The stag was about half the size of the wolf, it's antlers against Remus' midsection

However, Remus proved too strong for the stag, overpowering him quickly before throwing him across the room with a skid.

Then he turned to Katie, teeth bared and growling. Instinctively, she pulled out her wand, ready to blast him across the room. Her hand was shaking slightly as he came closer.

"Stupefy," Katie whispered under her breath.

The red sparks came into contact with the werewolf's chest, causing him to stumble backwards. Knowing the effects wouldn't last long on a werewolf, Katie quickly ran to the other side of the room, ducking behind an upturned table.

The black dog appeared to be conscious again and jumped onto Remus' back. It was even smaller than the stag. They thrashed about the room, Remus creating more scratch marks on the wall.

The stag now had a rat placed on his antlers, reeling back to throw the rat on top of Remus' hairy head. He seemed to create a slight annoyance to the wolf, which caused him to shake the dog off of his back, placing his attention to the rat on his head. It didn't take long for the rat to be thrown against the wall. It went down with a slight squeak, causing Katie to gasp, almost jumping up.

Across the room, the stag and dog were huddled in a corner, their heads close. If Katie knew any better, they appeared to be in a conversation.

The dog growled at the wolf again, regaining his attention. However, the stag was bounding it's way to her.

Now that her life wasn't in mortal peril, Katie allowed herself to think over what was happening. James, Sirius, Peter were nowhere to be found. Under some miracle, there were animals fighting Remus. A stag, a dog, and a rat. Then it hit her. Prongs, Padfoot, and Wormtail. James, Sirius, and Peter.

Katie's suspiciouns were confirmed when the stag transformed smoothly into the body of James Potter.

"James? What are y—" James shushed her quickly, so Remus wouldn't hear.

"I'll explain later. Right now, I need you to get out of here. It's dangerous."

"It's dangerous for you too! Remus could bite you!"

"No he can't. As an animangus, a bite from him won't have any effect on me." Katie still looked unconvinced.

"Look, I don't want you getting hurt. And I'm sure as hell that Remus would flip if he knew you were here or that he hurt you. So if not for my sake, do it for Remus. You know that he would never forgive himself if he ever hurt anyone."

However, as James was talking, Remus was prowling his way to the corner they were located in. Realizing that James was still in human form, Katie ran in front of him, sending an Aguamenti spell at Remus.

But before he was confounded by the water hitting his face, his clawed hand reached toward her, scratching her right bicep.

Blood began oozing out of the wound, causing the fabric of her uniform to become blanched in the scarlet liquid.

Katie put her hand against her upper arm, trying to stop the wound from flowing. It seemed to be of no use however, as the blood kept flowing, leaving her hand stained in red.

James and Sirius were now both attacking Remus, trying to keep him from injuring Katie even further. It appeared that the two were losing this battle however, showing signs of weakness.

Katie sat, propped against the overturned table, now too weak due to the rapid blood loss. She drifted in and out of consciousness, each time being woken by a loud bang or growl.

She looked up briefly, seeing James transform and rush over to her before she drifted off into black.

* * *

The pale morning light hit the closed eyelids of the pale, young male lying on the cot.

It was early morning, right around dawn, the sun barely seeping through the white linen curtains hung around the large windows.

Remus, though excruciatingly tired, opened his eyes slowly, blurry from grogginess and lack of sleep. Due to his sleep deprivation, he couldn't quite recall what happened the night before just yet, a slight ache around his temples, causing him to groan slightly.

It took him a while to realize where he was, his eyes still blinking back sleepiness as he swiveled his slightly blurred vision around the large room. The hospital wing. _Why was he here?,_ he thought as he shook his head slightly from confusion. The four of them always returned to their dormitories after full moons, seeing as nobody was to know about them being animangi, even Dumbledore and Madame Pomfrey.

There were new, fresh scars on his arms; more than there usually were, ranging in size. Running his fingers over the slightly, he could feel the rough, torn skin that was left behind by the marks. _It must have been a rough night,_ he thought to himself.

There were nights where he would transform where he and the rest of the marauders wouldn't have to thrash around fighting each other. Those nights, the company of the animals were enough to keep him from becoming hostile.

Other nights, he would be so anxious that the moment he transformed, he would begin to scratch and claw at whatever he could get near to. This would prompt a long fight between the four, which left many scars.

Remus lay his head back down on the small, white pillow on his bed. He turned his body, snuggling a bit into the thin blankets and sheets, attempting to become more comfortable. The light coming through the thin curtains was dim, barely visible. He had intended to get about an hour more of sleep, but he instead found himself with eyes-wide open, staring at the vast white ceiling above him.

He couldn't remember much from the night before. He hadn't had such a difficult time remembering the terrible nights since the days of his childhood, where his small, young mind was often too terrified and tired to remember.

Bits and pieces were coming back to him as he lay contemplating, fluttering his eyes open and close. He cringed slightly when the memories of how violent and brutal the werewolf was came to him. It had to be one of his most violent transformations yet.

Closing his eyes, he sighed, trailing a hand over his face slowly. He continued going over his memories of last night when he suddenly remembered something. _Well, someone_. He sat up quickly in his bed, already unraveling himself from the sheets when he heard James' sleepy voice from the bed next to his.

He was squinting in the rather dark room, his glasses still on the bedside table. It seemed that Remus' sudden movement had woken him and he began to slip his feet onto the floor. "Moony, what's wrong?" He said as he yawned, slipping his glasses on.

"Kate. She was there last night wasn't she? I-I hurt her didn't I? Where is she?" Remus was fully out of bed by now, a panicked look on his facial features. He looked around the hospital wing quickly, spotting her chocolate brown hair sprawled out on the pillow of the bed across from his. He rushed quickly to her side, his heart beating slightly from anxiety.

"Moony, she'll be fine you don't have to worry." Remus turned to see James making his way towards the bed as well, running a hand through his already messy hair.

"What—What happened?" He closed his eyes tightly. _This_ was what he'd always feared. He _hurt_ someone while he was a werewolf. Not just a stranger, one of his best friends. He ran a hand through his hair quickly, turning to James with wide eyes for an explanation.

"Well, she followed us somehow, I don't know _how_ , but she did. I reckon she was on that prefect round she mentioned. She made it to the Shrieking Shack and well," James ran another hand through his hair; a nervous habit. "Well, you were already transformed when she got there. It was a tough night; Sirius and I, we had a hard time holding you off. She did a brilliant job at keeping away from you before you could attack."

"But I tried getting her to leave, so I returned to my human form. Somehow, you snuck up on us and she put herself between you and I, hitting you with a spell. But, well, you got a slash at her arm before the spell hit you. She was unconscious when you transformed back. We came here immediately."

"I told Madame Pomfrey that you came into our dormitory carrying Katie and that we thought you two needed to go to the hospital wing. She was suspicious but she didn't ask. She made Padfoot and Wormtail go back to the common room, but she let me stay."

Remus turned back to Katie. There was a large bandage wrapped around her right upper arm. It was stained a bright red from the blood seeping through the large wounds. She looked a lot paler, much like he usually did around this time of the month.

"Moony."

"Prongs, I-I _hurt her_." Remus began to pace, continually shoving his hands in his hair as he continued to look anxious.

"Remus, She'll be okay. Madame Pomfrey said that she's going to make a full recovery."

"But I'm the reason she's lying there. _I_ did this to her."

James paused. Remus was obviously upset and he didn't want to say the wrong thing. "That won't matter to her. This is Katie. She won't see you any differently."

"But James, the thing is, I still hurt her. I can't live with knowing that I _hurt_ someone when I transformed. I could've bitten her if she didn't have the wit that she has!"

A feminine voice suddenly rose from the bed they were standing next to.

"Remus? James? Where are we?" Katie squinted, adjusting to the morning light. She slowly sat up on the bed, looking drowsy. She blinked a couple times before realization hit her.

"Wait, last night. The Whomping Willow. Remus, you're a werewolf. And James! You're an animangi. And-an-my arm wa-" She lifted her right hand slowly, inspecting the bandages. Remus turned away, unable to look at the damage he'd done.

Katie realized that Remus had turned away from her, causing her to grimace slightly. She looked to James for an explanation before it dawned on her. "Remus? You know that this won't change anything right?"

"Y-you still want to be friends with me? But I hurt you! I did that to you!"

"Of course I would still be friends with you. You're still Remus, that hasn't changed. And you don't have control over what you do as a werewolf, I know you didn't mean to."

She looked so sincere when she talked that he almost believed her. "It doesn't matter that I didn't have control, I still did it. You still have bandages around your arm. You're still going to have permanent scars there. And it's all my fault." He sat down at the chair next to the bed next to her, placing his head in his hands.

"Remus," her voice was soft and gentle. "It was my fault, I went out there, knowing you were a werewolf. You couldn't have known that I would show up out of nowhere."

"But I did this! I hurt someone. I could have killed you if I had the chance!" His voice was raised and shaky; his eyes wide.

Katie stood up from the bed, walking to Remus. She noticed that James had stepped back, but still being in view, allowing the two to talk without interruption.

Tentatively, she placed a hand on Remus' shoulder. He flinched at the contact but made no move to move away.

"Remus." She spoke softly and quietly. "Remus, look at me."

When his hands didn't budge from his face, she slowly pushed them back, taking his head into her hands, forcing him to look at her as she kneeled down. She could hear both of their breathing hitch at the sudden proximity.

"I know that you feel terrible about all of this. But I need you to understand that it's okay. You didn't mean to hurt me. I'm not going to look at you any differently. I know you're going to blame yourself over and over again. And I don't know how I can make you see that this isn't your fault. But, it's okay. I'm okay." She looked at him, staring straight into his eyes. They were tired and worn but they still held the warmth that they always did.

The expression in his eyes changed and for a second she thought that she was able to convince him that it wasn't his fault. That was until the look in his eyes was replaced with a look of doubt.

Remus suddenly stood up, looking anxious again. "But it's not okay! I hurt you. How am I going to live with myself knowing that I hurt someone like that? Hell, an injury like that could've been fatal. I could've killed you!"

Katie made a move to step closer to him but he backed away.

"I just—I need to go think."

He swiftly turned and walked out of the hospital wing. Katie went to go after him, but James stopped her.

"Let him be alone for a while. He'll come around."

Katie reluctantly sat back down on her bed, watching the doors of the hospital wing close, blocking a retreating Remus from sight.

* * *

 _So, that's chapter five. I hope you liked it! Yes there might be a bit of angst (or maybe more than a bit) for the next chapters but, well, you'll see. Don't forget to review and I'll see you in the next chapter. :)_


	7. Chocolate & Roses

Remus wasn't at breakfast that morning.

After he left the hospital wing, Madame Pomfrey had come bustling in, fretting over Katie. She insisted that Katie stay the day in the hospital wing. But Katie persuaded her to let her go. It took quite some time to persuade the middle-aged nurse, but after about 5 attempts, she finally caved. Before she allowed Katie to leave however, she spread a few ointments on the slashes located on her arm, and adamantly had Katie drink a healing draught.

By the time she was released from the hospital wing, Katie found that it was pretty early—just a few minutes after six in the morning—so she decided to head to the common room to change her clothes first. Her clothes were blood-soaked and dusty from her escapade the night before; James left a bit earlier to change for the day.

Lily was still sleeping when she entered, her red hair sprawled in a messy blob on her pillow. She didn't want to wake her because Katie knew that Lily was far from being a morning person. So, she tiptoed quietly to her trunk, careful not to wake the other girls from their slumber either.

She pulled out her standard uniform—a cardigan, skirt, and white button-up. She also shoveled through her mess of a trunk until she found the extra robes that her mother had bought.

It was still fairly early when she found all the clothes she needed. So, Katie opted to take a shower, wanting to clean the dirt, grime, and blood from her skin. Entering the bathroom, she turned on the running water, waiting for it to become just the right temperature. The warm water beat down on her tense muscles, relieving her of some of the tension. As she scrubbed the bubbles into her frothy hair, the bathroom soon filled with the scent of roses from her shampoo and body wash. She rather liked the scent of the flowers; they reminded her of the rose garden in her backyard.

Stepping out of the shower, Katie felt profoundly refreshed and soothed. There was a layer of mist on the large mirror on the wall from the heat of the water, clouding her reflection.

Quickly putting on her clothes for the day, she also added a bit of mascara on her eyelashes to revive her appearance. She was about to turn and open the door to the bathroom, when she stopped. She pulled up the sleeve of her robe, examining the wounds on her arm in the now-clear mirror.

There were three long gashes, stretching from her shoulder to her elbow. The blood was long gone now, with the ointments and shower. Instead all was left was the ruptured tissue of her broken skin. They were permanent, she knew, any attack from a transformed werewolf would leave permanent scars. She sighed, remembering Remus' reaction from earlier. _Would he flinch every time he saw her scars?_

He thought this was his fault. In reality, it really wasn't; it was hers. Her and her stupid recklessness and curiosity. If she hadn't followed them then Remus wouldn't have attacked her, and he wouldn't feel so terrible about himself. _How could she ever convince him that it's not his fault?_ Somehow, her nails had found their way into her mouth as she chewed on them from anxiousness.

"Katie? Are you in there?" The sound of a female voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She pulled her sleeve down and looked at her mediocre appearance one last time before opening the door. A sleepy looking Alice was awaiting. Her short pixie cut hair was sticking up in all directions, and she was still clothed in her pink pajamas.

"Morning Alice. Are any of the girls awake yet?"

"Lily's still asleep of course," she said with a snort. "But Marlene usually wakes up around this time so you can wake her up. I don't think she'll be too hard to wake. Dorcas is reading over there."

Alice pointed to the bed farthest from the bathroom, where indeed, Katie could make out Dorcas' curly, blonde hair. Her face was buried behind a rather large book in front of it, obscuring her face from view. Nodding, Katie stepped out of the bathroom to let Alice inside.

The dormitory was still dark, except for the illuminating light coming from the tip of Dorcas' wand, which illuminated her part of the room. Katie grabbed her wand off of her nightstand, waving it quickly, opening the curtains. The room was suddenly encased in the morning light, much to the despair of Lily and Marlene, who both slept without drawing in the curtains of their beds.

A slight groan erupted from Marlene's bed, followed with a grumble before she started to unravel herself from her sheets. She stood up, stretching and yawning, mumbling a tired 'mornin' to nobody in particular.

Lily however, only buried her head into her pillow further, telling everyone that she didn't want to be disturbed. Katie decided that she wouldn't have to wake her just yet. She still needed to talk to James anyway. Katie walked over to Lily's bed and tapped the top of her head lightly. The only response she got was a sigh of frustration. Katie chuckled at her best friend's grouchy mood.

"Lils," she whispered. When she didn't get any response out of the redhead she heightened her volume. "Lily. I'm going to go meet up with James. I have to talk to him about quidditch stuff. I'll see you at breakfast." This time Lily shook her head ever so slightly. Katie stood, laughing slightly. "Well that's if you ever get up out of bed."

A pillow hit her in the back of her head. "Well, for a near-zombie you have pretty good aim, Lils."

A sound between a bark and a laugh escaped her lips when she heard a faint "shut up" as she was heading down the stairs.

"Good morning boys!"

James was the only one fully awake, standing next to his trunk, putting on a white button up. Sirius and Peter were still very much asleep, even more so than Lily. To her dismay, Remus' bed covers were upturned and messy, but any sign of the brown-haired male was nowhere to be found.

"I assume you're feeling better," James smirked at her as he did his last button. He shot her a worried glance. "Remus wasn't here when I came up."

She sighed, taking a seat on the edge of Remus' bed. It smelled of chocolate and parchment. "Anyway, you've got a lot of explaining to do James."

He was about to open his mouth to object, but the pointed glare he received from the brunette was enough to get him talking. He told her about everything. About how they'd found out about Remus' problem in second year. How they became animangi, and anything else that he felt she needed to know. Katie merely kept quiet, wanting to take in all the details. But she did ask questions here and then, to which James could all answer.

By the time James had finished explaining, Katie seemed to be torn between being confused or being amazed. "Wow, maybe you lot are smarter than I thought."

" _Wrong_. We _are_ smarter than you think."

"So, you're a stag?" James nodded. "And Sirius was the dog and that Peter was the rat?" He nodded again, more preoccupied with the comb in his hands. He seemed to be struggling to get any decent look from his mess of hair.

"Wake them up, will you? I'm getting hungry." Katie rolled her eyes, but obeyed his order. Grabbing a shoe from the floor, she walked around to Sirius's bed.

She jumped onto him, landing sprawled on her back against his body. "Sirius, wake up!" He still didn't budge. "Fine. Time to bring out the shoe," she grumbled under her breath, a mischievous look on her face. Taking a quick survey of the room, she found a pair of black shoes sprawled near a large dresser.

Making sure that the bottom of the shoe would be making contact with Sirius' face, she pressed it against his cheek. He instantly sat up, placing a hand on the cheek that the shoe was on. "Katie how could you? My beautiful face! You ruined it!"

"Oh shut it, you dumb arse," she laughed, letting out a loud snort. Sirius faked an angry look before throwing her off the bed, making Katie come into contact with the floor, emphasized with a loud thud. She stuck her tongue out him and he returned the look.

"Just get up, you big oaf." Katie stood up, dusting off her skirt. Tucking the loose strands of slightly damp hair behind her ear, she made her way towards Peter's bed. All that could be seen was the short tuffs of blonde hair sticking out from underneath the blanket.

Peter was much easier to wake than Sirius, so Katie just shook his arm lightly. "Peter, time to get up." He stirred for a bit before he opened his eyes to find Katie standing there. His face turned a deep shade of red before he quickly scrambled out of bed, tripping on a shoe.

"How's the arm doing?" James was propped against the doorframe of the bathroom, now fully dressed in his uniform but his hair was just as messy as it was when Katie walked in.

Katie shrugged. "Healing well. All the blood's gone."

Sirius had his head in his trunk, scavenging through the mess of items. "I assume Prongs told you about last night?" He stood up, a pile of clothes in his hands. Somehow, his hair still fell perfectly. Sirius looked at Katie expectantly and she nodded.

"Padfoot, hurry up will you? My teenage body is in need of nutrition!"

Sirius turned his head to where James was sitting on his bed, pouting. "Peter's not ready yet either! Why don't you tell him to hurry up?"

"Actually, I'm ready," a small voice from inside the bathroom said. A second later, Peter's blonde head popped out into view. His tie was slung around his shoulders, but it was obvious that his attempt to do it failed.

"Uh Pete, do you need help with that tie?"

He was fumbling with it, still obviously confused. "N-no I got it." James and Katie just watched his failed attempts at tying it before Katie stood up to help him.

Once she finished tying it correctly, Peter gave her a quiet thank you right as Sirius yelled from the bathroom. "Alright then! Beauty and Grace is back!" He was clad in his uniform, though appeared to have done it hastily.

"How can you be Beauty and Grace if you don't have either?" Katie turned to him, smirking at the faked hurt expression on his face. James and Peter let out howls of laughter.

"Katie, dear. That hurt. That hurt right here," he said, pointing a finger at the left side of his chest.

"Sirius, your heart's on the other side." A chuckle escaped her lips when he looked genuinely confused.

"Whatever, let's go. I'm starving."

"So, have you guys lost your touch? No pranks in three weeks? Not even a beginning of the year prank!"

"Oh don't you worry your pretty, little head KitKat, we've just been busy. Prepare for a big one soon." James ruffled her head, to which she promptly smacked his hand away.

"Oi! Not the hair!" Katie smoothed down the hairs that began to stick up.

"Careful Kate, you're starting to sound like Sirius," James tutted. He ducked right on time when Katie went to hit him.

They continued to laugh until Sirius came to a stop at the bottom of the staircase. "Prongs, where's Moony? Isn't he supposed to be resting?"

James cast a look at Katie, whose laughter subdued abruptly. "He and I got in a bit of an argument this morning." Katie didn't reveal much with what she said, seeing as they were in the common room, and a few people were awake and milling about. But Sirius could read between the lines. He knew Remus, and he knew Katie, and how each of them would react to things.

He knew how Remus would react to hurting someone as a werewolf. It reminded him painfully of the happenings on a night of the full moon last year. Remus went absolutely mad when he found out about Snape. Sirius could only imagine how he'd react to something _actually_ _happening_ to Katie. The fact that it was Katie probably meant that he would he react even worse.

Peter, who was slower when it came to understanding the 'code' that girls used in speaking was utterly confused. "What was the argument about?"

"I'll explain later, Wormtail. We should head to breakfast though."

When the group was nearly half way across the Common Room, Katie spotted a head of red hair at the bottom of the girls' staircase.

"Lils!" Lily turned her head at the sound of her name being called and walked over to the group.

"Morning Katie," she said as caught up with them, eyeing the boys somewhat suspiciously.

James however was smiling brightly, with a large smirk on his face. "Morning Evans!"

"Go away, Potter," Lily said, rolling her eyes. But there wasn't the tone of annoyance and hatred that was usually present in her words.

"Now, dear Lily. _You_ came _here_. So you can't tell _me_ to go away."

Katie chuckled at the exchange. "Well we were just going down for breakfast, come join us." Lily looked like she was about to decline, looking between the stairs and the group in front of her. But then she just shrugged, beginning to walk with Katie and the rest of them.

"Why are people looking at us like that?" Lily was glancing around at the groups of girls with looks of disdain in their eyes. There were also a few guys glaring at the group passing by.

Katie shrugged. "Oh, they're jealous. We're walking around and hanging with the four—well, er— _three_ most popular blokes in school, and then there's the fact that James and Sirius have nearly the entire female population wanting to be with them. After a while you get used to the looks."

"Now, now Katie. It's not just the girls, we Marauders have been keeping quite a few males from bothering you as well," Sirius said, slinging an arm around Katie.

Katie rolled her eyes, not even bothering to shrug Sirius' arm off of her. "How? By making it look like I'm dating you, James, _and_ Remus, all at the same time?"

"Kate, _we_ don't make it look like you're dating dear Moony, you lot do that all on your own." This time James was too busy laughing to duck, and the back of Katie's hand made contact with the back of James' neck with a resounding _smack!_ Even Lily let out a giggle, and Katie sent her a playful glare.

"Well, the world might be ending, but I might just have to agree with Potter on that one." At that, James smile became just a tiny bit wider.

"Oh, sod off, when have we _ever_ acted as a couple? Besides if we acted so much like it, wouldn't the entire school think that instead of thinking I'm with you two idiots?"

"Maybe when you guys are laughing your bloody heads off from a joke that probably wasn't even funny."

"Or, the tomato faces in the library. _Yes Kate,_ we saw those."

"Oh! Oh! And when they're smiling at each other all lovey-dovey!"

"I saw you holding hands once!"

"And trust us, it doesn't take nearly as long to get back to the common room after your rounds as it takes for you two to get back."

"Oh and we can't forget your little late-night closet rendezv—"

Katie threw her hands up in the air in exasperation, but the expression on her face was a cross between amusement and contemplation. "Alright shut up! First of all, _friends_ laugh and smile at each other. Second, those things don't exactly seem coupley." But even Katie could hear that even she wasn't sure of her words.

"Ah, Katie, the stronger the denial, the stronger the feelings. Ain't that right Evans?" James nudged her slightly with his elbow. She recoiled and moved to walk next to Katie and Sirius. James' shoulders slumped slightly at the move.

The group was too preoccupied in talking amongst themselves to notice that they were now standing in front of the large doors of the Great Hall. Well, four of them were talking, Katie had her eyebrows scrunched in thought.

"Kate! Earth to Katie!" A small hand was being waved in front of her face. When she snapped back to reality she saw that it was Lily's hand. The group had stopped, all looking at her with worried looks.

"You alright, KitKat?" Katie just nodded her head for them to continue walking.

There were a few students already there when they'd arrived. The hall hadn't reached packed tables just yet, seeing that it was still pretty early. Voices and chatter were milling as groups of students sat together, eating and chatting amicably.

Katie swept her eyes over the Gryffindor table anxiously, only to feel her heart drop when she couldn't find a trace of Remus anywhere. _Had he really been that upset?_

Four pairs of eyes were watching her carefully as they sat down at the far end of the Gryffindor table.

James seemed to have known the source of her anxiety. "He'll be fine Kate. He's probably just blowing off steam."

Katie nodded her head absentmindedly, not fully believing his words.

"Who's he?" Lily looked around expectantly at the four before a look of realization dawned her face. "Oh, I hadn't noticed. Where is he? What's happened?"

"We just got into an argument this morning, that's all," Katie said bluntly.

Lily looked like she wanted to ask more but decided against it when Sirius shook his head.

"So, how are your projects coming along?" Katie was poking at an orange slice, deciding to change the topic. James already had a stack of pancakes on his plate and Sirius had just as many waffles. Peter and Lily had just grabbed eggs and a few strips of bacon.

"Fine, Alice and I are just trying to figure out how we're gonna do the model." James made the mistake and taking a bite of pancake as he talked, making his sentence all muffled and almost incoherent. Lily was looking at him in disgust.

"Well, turns out, Black isn't as dumb as I thought he was."

"Hey!" Sirius looked thoroughly offended, but the group couldn't take him seriously because of the piece of bacon hanging out of his mouth.

"I'll let you know Evans that I am highly capable of being top of the class, which in fact I am." He crossed his arms and held his head up, like a young child throwing a tantrum.

"Well, third, behind James and I." James snorted at that, trying not to laugh at Sirius' glare.

"Well Katie, that's because you lot were learning magic from your freakishly smart parents from the day you turned five."

"Well yes, but I _also_ study for tests and such and do my homework, Sirius, those are things too, though I really do believe that you've forgotten what they are. James over here is just somehow clever without having to do those things."

"I don't know how you still manage to find time to study let alone read for _fun_? You can't read for fun if reading in itself isn't fun." He pouted slightly, crossing his arms as Katie stuck her tongue out at him. The rest of the group just watched in amusement as the two bickered, James wondering if by some miracle he was the most mature out of his two best friends.

As the two began to glower at each other, James opted to change the topic to avoid a shouting match between the two. "What about you Wormtail? How is it with the lovely Meadows?" With James' interruption Sirius took it as a cue to return to focusing his attention back to the stack of waffles towering on his plate.

"Not well. We can't agree on anything." An image of the two sitting at the library suddenly popped into Katie's head. They were sitting about five feet apart, stiff-faced and not talking to each other.

Sirius had somehow finished all his waffles by the time Peter had finished speaking and turned his attention back to Katie, a smirk on his face this instead of a glare. "And how's our favorite pair of love birds doing on theirs?" Sirius winked dramatically, leaning back slightly.

Katie sighed deeply. "First of all, we're not dating or _in love,"_ she said using air quotations. "As for the project, we're about half way done."

"Think what you will, Katie."

* * *

The halls were decently empty when they left the Great Hall. Katie had convinced James and Sirius to leave early for class, seeing as Professor Mcgonagall threatened Sirius and James with detentions should they be tardy to Transfiguration again.

Lily and Katie walked ahead of the three; Lily discussing the Potions essay they were assigned the day before, with Katie listening half-heartedly. Her thoughts were preoccupied with the Marauder that wasn't present. She was worried that he'd gone off somewhere, where nobody would find him. She knew that her thoughts were probably incorrect, this was Remus of course. But as the halls got more crowded, her thoughts continued to run wild.

Turning the corner, she took a deep breath before stepping into the Transfiguration classroom. There were three people already present. Two Hufflepuff girls that Katie had seen around halls from time to time, and, to Katie's immense relief, Remus Lupin. His head was bent downwards, eyes focused on his open textbook, but he wasn't reading it. His light-brown hair was a mess, mussed, almost as messy as James'.

When Katie stepped into the classroom, Remus looked up, their eyes meeting. Chocolate brown against dark hazel. Katie could see the different emotions in his brown orbs, even from so far away. Guilt, doubt, conflict, and something else she couldn't recognize. His eyes traveled down to her right arm. She watched him flinch slightly, obviously remembering the events of yesterday and this morning. A guilty expression made its way onto his face before he looked down again.

The action broke the gaze, and broke Katie out of the slight haze she went under. A tap on her shoulder made her suddenly aware of her surroundings. She turned her head to see Lily glancing between her and Remus. Katie brushed her off quickly, hurrying to her usual desk.

Lily, James, Sirius, and Peter had come in as well, taking their seats. James and Sirius in the desks behind Lily and Katie. Peter next to Remus, to the right of Sirius and James.

"Moony! There you are! You missed breakfast mate." Sirius was quite chip, considering the events that happened the night before. Katie guessed that he was just trying to ease the obvious tension.

He rolled his eyes, finally looking up from his textbook for the first time since Katie walked in. "I'm aware Sirius." It was quiet for a second before Katie let out a small giggle.

Hearing Remus make sarcastic remarks had always made her laugh. He was rarely sarcastic around her when they were alone. Yes, he was one to joke, but never one to be blunt and sarcastic around her too often. She only ever really saw this side of him around the Marauders. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate how sweet he was, but she loved seeing this side of him, it made him more, well real and relatable in her life, nobody could be as sweet as he usually was without having other differing qualities.

Everyone but Remus turned their head quickly in shock, looking at the brunette, because Katie always laughed, yes, quite often too. But Katherine Hart _never_ giggled. In all their years of knowing her, they could always make her laugh, sometimes to the point to which she had tears coming out of her eyes as she clutched her sides. But they had never heard her _giggle._

Remus was the only one not looking at her in shock. Instead he was looking at her with that look in his eyes that was just meant for her. Well, to others who paid attention, that was the look he always gave her. Remus was very oblivious to his staring habits. Her giggle was one of the sweetest things he'd ever heard, sounding like a blend between a perfect piano song and the slight ringing of tiny bells at Christmas time. The sound made some of the guilt he felt wash away, even for just that moment.

Her eyes were closed, her head thrown at a downwards angle. Slowly, Katie's giggles subsided and her features changed to confusion as she gazed at the surprised looks on her friends' faces.

"What?"

"You _giggled_ ," Lily said, still not snapping out of her surprised daze.

Katie was still confused. "Yeah? And?"

This time it was James who spoke. "You _never_ giggle."

"I'm sure I have before. Besides what's the big deal if I did?"

"B-Because well, it's _you_ Kate. I've known you since I was _four,_ and I've never heard you giggle."

"Well, it's just a laugh isn't it?" She looked around chuckling, becoming slightly worried about the looks on their faces. Her eyes landed on Remus, who was looking at the four as well. They made eye contact again and this time, Remus didn't recoil, but instead cracked her a small smile. Katie felt a slight relief at the familiar smile, gaining hope that maybe the events of last night hadn't doomed their friendship.

Looking around again, Katie snapped her fingers in front of their faces, but it seemed to prove to no avail.

"Lily? James? Sirius? Uh, Peter? Guys?" She looked to Remus for help but he just shrugged.

Trying to think quickly, Katie knacked her head for something that could make the four snap out of the daze. "Um, well, Remus. You've heard me 'giggle' before right?" She used air quotes, still not understanding what all the fuss was about.

His face turned a slight shade of red as everyone in the group turned their attention to him, gaping at him with wide eyes. "Well, yes."

Sirius leapt up from his seat. "Okay, that's it! You two are in love and that's that. Name one of your kids after me will you? Orion Lu—" He was cut off mid sentence as Katie clamped a hand over his mouth, shoving him back into his seat. She cast a worried glance at Remus, seeing him stiffen at the mention of children.

"Sirius! Shut your mouth now, will you?" Katie looked around the room, seeing a few eyes on them from Sirius' outburst. She tried to smile at the onlookers, hoping they would look away soon enough.

Taking a hold of Sirius' shoulders, Katie look at him straight in the eye. "Sirius. Repeat after me okay? Katie and Remus are _not_ in love."

"Katie and Remus are definitely in love."

Exasperated, Katie threw her hands in the air and slumped down in her seat. She attempted to give Remus an apology but his eyes were downcast again, strictly keeping his line of vision at his desk.

* * *

"Today, we will be brewing the Amortentia potion. I assume from the essays I assigned that you all have a decent idea of what it is?" Professor Slughorn looked around the room at the multiple students, and looked back the bubbling pink potion beside him.

"Ms. Evans, would you like to tell us what the potion is?"

Lily stepped forward. "The Amortentia potion is the most powerful love potion known to the Wizarding World, usually being described as one of the most dangerous potions. However it does not create actual love, but instead formulates a powerful obsession and infatuation from the drinker. It also has a different scent for everyone, smelling like what attracts the person. It holds a pearl sheen when brewed correctly, giving off visible fumes."

"Brilliant Ms. Evans! Five points to Gryffindor for your outstanding explanation." Lily smiled brightly as Katie nudged her with a knowing look.

"So today, we will be brewing this potion. It is a highly advanced potion to create, so I will be pairing each of you into partners. However, I doubt that many will be successful in creating this particular love potion. Once I assign you a partner, please make your way to a cauldron and collect the required ingredients. I will be watching each of you carefully. This is an extremely dangerous potion and if I catch anyone here taking a sample, I will issue detentions."

Stepping closer to the group of students, he pointed his fingers toward Lily and Katie. "Ms. Evans, you will be with Ms. Hart."

They smiled at each other before heading off toward the direction of the supply cabinet. Katie was nearing the door when she heard Professor Slughorn say that Remus Lupin would be paired with James Potter.

"Moony, don't be too hard on yourself. She knows you didn't mean it." James was glancing back and forth from Remus to the ladle in his hand, which was stirring the shiny liquid in the cauldron.

"I know, but I hurt her, James. And who's to say that it won't happen a second time? I just—I don't know _how_ I'm supposed to react to all this. I'm dangerous. To her, to anyone that finds me. I just think keeping away from her is a good idea."

"Remus. You know Kate, she's not going to back down from this until she gets you to realize that it's not your fault."

Remus, stopped cutting the boomslang skin for a second and paused. He looked up and glanced at the brunette in question from across the room. She was concentrating on mixing the potion, eyebrows crunches and her hair messy. Unknowingly, a small smile came across onto Remus' face.

James began to multitask, glancing between Remus and Katie as he continued to stir. "I never thought I'd see the day. You really like her don't you?"

Remus snapped out of his stare, whipping his head toward James so fast that James was afraid he'd gotten whiplash. "As a friend yes. But you know that I can't think about anyone romantically."

James looked up at Remus from behind his glasses. "Can't? Or won't?"

Remus just sighed and continued to slice the bloomslang skin into perfect strips. "Moony, you can admit it you know, at least to me."

"Prongs," he said, sending James a warning glare. "I don't like her like that"

"Mr. 'I'm gonna stare at her like she's the only beautiful thing in the world' begs to differ."

Was he really that obvious? Remus thought. He was about to respond with another denial of his feelings when a sweet smell wafted up to his nostrils. A flowery scent.

"Roses," he said quietly to himself, forgetting that James was standing next to him.

"Strawberries. And grass, like in the quidditch pitch." James was smelling the potion as well.

More scents invaded Remus' senses. Chocolate, parchment, but the smell of roses never left. He remembered it, but he didn't know where.

Then it came to him. The most recent memory of the scent formulated in his mind; a dark closet and brown hair.

"Roses," he said again quietly, a small smile creeping onto his face.

"Roses, huh Moony?" James had stopped smelling the potion and was now smirking at Remus. "You know, Kate has rose scented shampoo."

 _Well he knew that now_ , Remus thought, but didn't dare voice his thoughts. "And _how_ do you know _that_ Prongs?" Remus was genuinely curious, turning his eyes from the shiny potion.

James chuckled, shaking his head slightly, his glasses falling down his nose a bit. "I was staying over at her house during the holidays in fifth year because my parents were on a mission, and well, I forgot to pack shampoo."

A slight laugh escaped Remus' lips as James turned a slight shade of red. "So, does this mean that you're officially confessing how much you like her, mate?"

Suddenly, Remus froze, realizing exactly what this implicated. He liked Katie, or, at least, was attracted to her. He knew that before, but now there really was no way to deny his feelings to himself. And these feelings just made his life a whole lot more complicated.

Across the classroom, a brunette was having a moment of realization as well.

Her arm was getting sore from the circular motions she had been doing for the past 7 minutes. The potion was coming along nicely, the pearl sheen was clearly visible now.

She turned to look at Lily taking detailed notes when she smelt it. Multiple scents bombarded her nostrils, throwing her for a bit of a loop. As they became individual scents, she was able to distinguish each one.

The sea. It was so vividly smelling, with hints of saltiness and and slight smell of breeze. She could almost imagine it when she closed her eyes. Scents of broom wood and roses entered her senses of smell as well, sweet-smelling flowery scents and mahogany. Her hand was raised to signify that they'd completed her potion when she smelt the particular scent that would throw her life into a completely different direction.

Chocolate. It was as if she just walked into honeydukes, full of sweets and candies. But this was a special scent of chocolate that made it so distinctive. It was a scent she'd smelled often, whether it be in the boy's dormitory or on her prefect rounds.

She was smelling the scent of Gizmo's Finely Built Chocolate, a chocolate brand that she knew to be the favorite of a certain light-haired marauder. She's smelled it this morning when she went to sat on his comforter. The chocolate carried hints of a distinct caramel, which had only been present in that brand of chocolate.

Her train of thought was broken when Professor Slughorn came bubbling between her and Lily, attempting to get a better look at the potion.

"Well, I see that you pair have completed the potion. My Goodness! This is perfect! It seems like you two and Mr. Potter and Lupin are the ones to have completed the potion successfully." Professor Slughorn was oblivious to the way Katie and Remus both perked their heads up and caught one another's eyes for the second time that day.

"Ms. Evans, if you don't mind me asking, what do you smell?" Katie broke contact with Remus to turn her head, putting her attention on Lily for the first time since she'd smelled the scents. Now looking at the redhead, there was a slight blush on her cheeks.

"Oh, well a fruity scent. Strawberries I presume, they have this distinct fragrance that other fruits don't have. A-and my m-mother's conditioner I believe." She stepped away quickly from the potion, her face turning a brighter shade of red. Katie was baffled by how jittery Lily seemed to be, and resolved to ask her about it later.

"And you, Ms. Hart?"

"Well, I smell the sea, mahogany wood, fresh roses and—," she stopped for a second, risking a glance up at Remus, who looked to be paying close attention to her while his face burned up. Unsure of whether or not to reveal the last smell, Katie took one more quick whiff of the potion, the chocolate scent engulfing her nostrils before she quickly and simply said, "Chocolate."

Many of the others in the room hadn't seen anything particularly interesting about the topic, but Sirius, who had been paired with Dorcas across from Katie, instantly lifted his head up and switched his gaze between Remus and Katie. Lily and James just stared at their respective potions partners, with knowing glances.

Katie busied herself with her notes, sparing a quick glance at Remus from across the room, looking utterly conflicted and confused and Katie couldn't help but feel the familiar feeling of confusion and warmth as she took a quick look once again at the pearly substance that just smelled entirely of him.


	8. Not a Monster

To the students of Hogwarts, nothing much had changed. Their lives went on as they always did, wake up, eat, learn, study, then sleep. Nothing out of the ordinary for them, except for the common surprises that always popped up here and there. But to six Gryffindors, all knew that something had definitely changed, something in the dynamic in which they went through everyday life had changed. It was so painfully obvious to anyone who'd bothered more than a mere glance the usual tight-knit group. To the normal admirers who snuck glances at the group every now and then wouldn't see anything different. They were all there, just like always, James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Katherine Hart, and sometimes even Lily Evans.

It all looked normal, James and Sirius continued to joke and walk around the school with slight hops to their steps. Remus Lupin continued to watch over his friends with his tired eyes, scolding them, or in other times joining in with them. Peter Pettigrew continued to follow the group, like a small rat scurrying around, unnoticed by most, but not really minding the shadow that the three cast over him. Katherine Hart continued to roll her eyes at her best friends' silly antics. And when Lily Evans joined the group of misfits, she would still loathe James Potter; even her friendship with Sirius Black was now a normal sight for looking eyes. The only difference that may have been spotted from even an unobservant eye was the lack of pranks for the first few weeks of school. But even that had been put back to normal, with raining dungbombs, paint splatters, and any ridiculous thing the Marauders could come up with.

But to anyone paying a close eye to the highly famed group of Gryffindors, they would notice that something had definitely changed. It was in the way that Remus Lupin had always sat the farthest away from Katherine Hart, which was an odd sight to see; the two were nearly as close to each other as Katie was to James and Lily. It was in the way James or Sirius, or sometimes even Lily cast worried glances at the two in particular. It was in the way James and Srius tried to push the two together, but not completely jokingly, but instead with a hint of desperation mixed in as well. It was in the way that it seemed that Katherine Hart and Remus Lupin hadn't had any contact with one another, despite the many obvious attempts from Katie, who, with every time the light-haired Marauder seemed to turn a deaf ear at her attempts, became noticeably frustrated, and even sometimes, sad and disappointed.

To the group of Gryffindors in matter, it was so very painfully obvious to them, whether it be at breakfast, in the common room, or even in the library. They all knew, well the Marauders that was, that Remus would react terribly to that night, but nobody had expected the very dynamic of their friendships to be put on a strain due to this.

James thought that maybe after that day in potions, brewing Amortentia and knowing that Remus smelled one of Katie's scents in that potion, that maybe things would go back to normal soon. Because well, you can't stay away from someone you have feelings for right? But dear Merlin, did he get proved wrong. Remus just resolved to stay away from Katie more since that day, somehow skillfully avoiding her when the five hung out together and keeping conversations to a minimum when they sat in the library, hunched over their project. It was quite painful for him to see the many attempts that Katie had tried to reconcile their friendship fail. He'd tried his best to get them back to normal, at first in a joking manner, telling him to just go and hug it out with her—which, mind you, Remus had seemingly brushed off the thought completely—but becoming increasingly more serious as the week went on when it seemed that nothing would get Remus to stop distancing himself from Katie.

Over the years, the group had its fair share of arguments, whether they be between James and Sirius, Katie and James, or Remus and Sirius. But seeing Katie and Remus not on the best terms was a new idea and was heavily disliked by the group. Of course they'd had their very slight disagreements, but never a full blown argument such as the one that was going on right in front of their eyes.

Nights in the library were tense between the two, often filled with silence on Remus' side and frustration on Katie's. Sirius and Lily just watched them across the table in worry, never having thought that there would come a day where their relationship would be on better terms than Katie and Remus'.

For Katie, the week following that night was filled with a rush and whirlwind of so many different emotions she didn't know where to start.

Frustration and impatience seeped out every now then when Remus just continued to ignore her attempts to talk to him. She wondered how he managed to keep her at a distance, considering they nearly were always in the presence of one another. She caught him looking at her every once and a while, sometimes with guilt, and sometimes with a completely different emotion, one that gave her a weird but warm feeling. Those looks often gave her hope that it would be the day where she could finally get to talk to him, but it always seemed that she couldn't find the right time.

There were nights of confusion laying awake in her poster bed where she thought back to the smell. The smell of chocolate in Amortentia, wondering where exactly her feelings for the light-haired marauder lay. She'd always felt a sense of comfort with him, but she'd always written off the feeling, because well, he was one of her best friends. And of course she'd thought him to be attractive, that thought quite often visited her thoughts as she turned older.

While she wasn't too sure of what she was feeling yet, there was one thing she knew for sure. She just wanted Remus Lupin back. She just wanted to be able to talk to him again, because she realized in his absence from her life that she'd missed him dearly. She wanted to wipe all the guilt on his face when he looked at her and just replace it with that smile of his, that one special smile where his teeth peeked out from his lips and there was just a joy radiating in his normally tired eyes.

And it hurt, it really did. Because he was one of her best friends, and friendships aren't supposed just end like that.

It had been gnawing at her all week, her worry about the situation growing more each time he pushed her away.

So, that's how Katherine Hart ended up in an abandoned classroom somewhere on the seventh floor on a stormy Friday afternoon. She was sat on the cold stone floor, against one of the walls of the room. Books were cluttered around her, scattered along her feet and book bag. A rather large book was in her lap, the edges frayed and the bind almost broken, one of the biggest of the collection around her.

But the said book was sitting on her lap, abandoned, seeing as the reader's eyes was tilted toward the tall ceilings instead of the large book. Tears prickled her eyes, causing her light hazel eyes to overtake a slight glossed-over look. The small lanterns around the classroom illuminated her tear embossed eyes even more, making them look as if they sparkled. Sniffling, she looked down at her wrist, the watch Remus had given her last year still in place. It read 6:38; she was supposed to meet Remus again in the library today to continue on that dreaded project. But for the love of Merlin she couldn't stand another hour of silence, guilty looks, short muttered responses, and failed attempts at fixing things.

She sighed, quietly, tilting her head back down to the old dusty book. It was to no avail however, her thoughts were much too preoccupied at the moment. It was eating at her, the guilt that it was her fault that their friendship was in ruins. If she hadn't been so curious that night, this would never have happened.

Her thoughts were broken minutes later when the door of the classroom creaked open, a flood of light entering the room. A tuft of messy black hair peeked out from the large door, barely visible in the dimly lit room. James' head turned around the classroom, doing a double take, until his eyes finally rested on her small figure across the room. There was a large desk covering most of her figure, but she was sure that her hair was clearly visible to a standing person. Closing the door behind him as he entered, James got to her crowded space in less than 10 strides.

"Kate? What are you doing here?" He was looking down at her, seeming to be deciding whether or not to sit down.

"Project," she said holding up one of the books to her right, forcing a tight smile. He looked down at her again, squinting. Seeming to have made up his mind, he cleared some of the books to the side, taking a seat next to her.

Situating himself in the space beside her, he leaned against the wall. "Lily told us she hadn't seen you for hours and when you didn't show up to the library, Remus got worried and we went looking for you." He swept a hand through his hair as his eyes scanned the room. She hadn't said anything, just nodding her head inaudibly.

"Now, what's going on Kate?" He turned his head to look at her, knowing immediately that something was wrong from the way her eyes shone with unshed tears. He learned early on in their friendship how to tell when she was sad; it wasn't in her expressions but in her eyes. He remembered a time when they'd found a small dead squirrel while exploring in the woods near her house; her face had remained indifferent but her eyes welled up with large tears.

Now that James had arrived, Katie found it increasingly difficult to control her emotions, tears welling up in her eyes again. She never could hide emotions well around others, whoever it may be that was with her. Shaking her head, a single tear dropped from her eyes as she turned her head downwards, trying to focus her eyes on the book in her lap.

"He _hates_ me, James." Her voice trembled at her statement. It was the first time she'd stated her troubles out loud. She hadn't even said anything to Lily, for fear of revealing Remus as a werewolf should the redhead try to make an attempt to comfort her.

James took a quick glance at her before chuckling a bit, shaking his head, deciding to resort to his first method of comfort, humor. "Kate, I know you're not the most observant out there, but if you honestly believe that a world exists where Remus could _ever_ hate you, then I reckon you'll need to open your eyes a bit bigger."

His hesitant grin turned to a frown when it became obvious that she wasn't at all comforted by his statement.

"James, he won't even talk to me."

"He thinks he's keeping you safe. In his mind, he thinks that your life would be much better off without him. Padfoot, Wormtail, and I have tried to convince him otherwise but he insisted that this is what's better for you."

"But it's my fault! It's not his! It's because I just _had_ to be curious. He would never have hurt me if _I_ hadn't been there." Cupping her face in her hands, Katie attempted to stop the tears from flowing, only to no avail, continuing to mutter under her breath about why she was at fault. He just watched her, letting her pour out the emotions she needed to, before reaching over to the brunette, engulfing her with a hug before laying her head on his shoulder, stroking it like he always did when she was upset.

"He'll come around soon. Someone just needs to convince him that what happened wasn't his fault."

"Who?" Her lips trembled as the tears streaming down her face slowed to a slow stop.

James continued to stroke her long locks, laying his cheek against her hair. "Come on now Kate, you're the smartest person I know, you should know who."

"But what if—what if he just doesn't want to talk to me? What if he just keeps pushing me away?"

"Where's the Katie I know that would never back down from anything?" This caused a small smile to appear on Katie's face as she wiped away the stray tears from her eyes.

"She'll be back, I reckon she just went off for a small vacation today." Her tears had died down to a minimum at this point, leaving her cheeks to be tear-stained and her eyes red and swollen. A small laugh escaped her lips as James joined in, bemused and chuckling as well.

"Well, where'd she go? Somewhere nice I hope? Maybe Anastasia or wherever."

Lifting her head of his shoulder, Katie let out a snort, hunching over in laughter. James stared at her wildly with wide and confused eyes. "Anas-Anastasia! James, I believe it's Antarctica. Besides it's bloody freezing over there!"

"I knew that, I was just testing you, Kate."

"Sure you were, Jamesy," a mischievous smile rounding her features as she turned to him. He's always hated that name, ever since they were children. Katie overheard Mrs. Potter call James the name once when she was six and had always used it when she felt like causing an annoyance to James.

"Sod off, KitKat," he said with a smirk, his hazel eyes glittering with mischief. He in turn knew that Katie despised that nickname, which was dubbed to her the moment Remus introduced his three pureblood friends to the chocolate in their first year.

Leaning against the wall once again, Katie turned her head and gave her best friend a grateful smile as she wiped some of the tears left on her face. "Thanks James."

Opening his arm open for a hug, he pulled Katie to his side. "Hey my best friend needs someone to be able to share her feminine feelings to." Another laugh escaped her lips as they both remembered that Saturday morning that seemed so long ago.

* * *

In another abandoned area of the castle, in a corridor on the eighth floor, a sandy-haired male and a red-headed female were opening doors left and right, only to find all of them empty.

"Lily, where could she be?" Running a hand through his hair as another classroom revealed itself to be empty, a slight edge of panic creeped its way into his statement.

"Remus, I'm sure she's fine. She's only been gone a few hours."

"Lily, the last time she was gone for this long, her grandmother died. Something might've happened," he said opening yet another empty door.

Lily stood there watching Remus carefully for a few moments before opening her mouth to speak. "What happened between you two? What was that argument about?"

Remus turned his head quickly to look at Lily, wide-eyed, still clutching the doorknob. "W-What?"

"It's obvious that something happened that morning. You two haven't been the same since then." She stared him straight in the eyes, with a surprising ferocity, while still looking on with gentleness.

She sighed quietly when he just stood there, his mouth not moving. "Remus, she's my best friend. I can tell when something's wrong, and no, I don't know what happened, she, well, she's not into the whole talking about feelings thing. At least not with me, it's Po- _James_ she usually tells things like that to."

Remus still hadn't uttered a sound. Inside his head, an internal conflict raged. He trusted Lily, he really did. They were always somewhat close, despite Lily's hatred for James and Sirius, they spent some time with each other considering they were two of Katie's closest friends. And he knew that she could keep a secret, he was almost absolutely certain she was aware of his feelings for Katie, but it seemed that Katie remained oblivious to it all, meaning that Lily hadn't let it slip. But his feelings and a monstrous secret were two completely different things. What if she'd decided that she wouldn't accept him after she found out what he was?

Looking down at her, he found that her eyes were still locked on him, gentle but demanding. Sighing, he turned his back, leaning his head against the wooden door, clutching onto the doorknob so tightly that his knuckles nearly turned white.

"I-I'm a werewolf," he whispered just loud enough for the redhead behind him to hear. He waited several moments for a reaction, a gasp, a disgusted sound, _anything_. When seconds passed and a sound hadn't sounded from behind him, he turned back slowly at the red-headed girl. A look of confusion replaced his troubled look as he stared at the amused expression on her face.

"Remus, I already know," she smiled at him, hoping to relieve the tension.

"B-but how?"

"Severus brought it up in fifth year," she started, a slight frown appearing on her face as she watched him flinch. "Well after he brought it up, I, well, I observed you. Everything he said made sense. I finally fully realized it when I heard Sirius call you 'Moony'."

He nodded slightly, not fully comprehending what just occurred.

"And you still want to be friends with me?"

"Of course, being a werewolf doesn't change who you are." She titled her head when he just continued to nod, eyes downcast.

Realizing that he wouldn't speak any further, she pressed on. "I'm assuming that your little problem had something to do with what happened?" Silence engulfed the two, Lily waiting patiently for an answer as Remus continued to keep his head down.

Lily almost believed that he just wouldn't utter any more words that night when he finally opened his mouth to speak, his voice quiet. "I hurt her."

"What?" Lily had prepared herself for a lot of different responses, but the one that stumbled out of his mouth wasn't one of them.

"W-When I transformed. She was there, and I-I," he cut off suddenly, choking on a slight sob. She'd never seen him cry, and she highly doubted that he'd ever cried in front of anyone else either. Taking a step forward, she placed an arm on his shoulder, giving him a gentle smile when he looked up slightly, telling him that she understood what he was trying to say.

"I'm sure that she doesn't blame you. She has been trying to talk to you for the past week."

A distressed look came upon his features. "I know that she doesn't, but _I_ blame _myself_ , because I could've done something worse, and if something were to happen to her, I—" He swept another hand through his hair, focusing his eyes on the wall nearby.

Lily smiled slightly, sadly, seeing just how much this broke him. "Remus, I know you care an awful lot about her, and I know she cares about you just as much." Remus blushed a bit at this but still didn't say anything. "But you can't change the past. Yes, you hurt her, but that wasn't you, that was the werewolf. If you're so afraid of something happening to her, aren't you afraid of losing her as well? So, you can't change what happened, but if you carry on distancing yourself from her, you might lose her friendship as well."

He lift his head gingerly and gave her a genuine smile. "Thank you, Lily."

"What are friends for?" She cast him another smile, glad that she could help with not only his troubles, but also help with Katie's troubles with the ignorance she got from Remus. Looking outside the window, she spotted the sun, nearly set behind the large forest of trees. "We should be heading back, it's getting late and I'm sure one of them must've found her by now."

Remus finally let go of the doorknob he forgot he was holding before closing the door and turning to follow Lily. The trek back to Gryffindor tower was mostly in silence, spare for the few bits of conversation here and there.

"So, you like her, don't you?" Lily turned to him with a knowing smile. Amusement crossed her face when Remus stared at her wide-eyed, stuttering out a small "What?"

"You're always staring at her, even when you were staying away from her, your eyes are almost always on her."

A blush rose to his face, a light dusting of red on his cheeks. "I—well, I," he stumbled, not really forming many coherent words.

"It's alright, you know. In fact, I reckon she fancies you back, I just don't think she knows it yet."

A small sparkle of hope entered his eyes as he mulled over the possibility of Katie liking him back, an even darker blush rising to his cheeks. However the reminder of that night from last week shut down the warm thoughts that invaded his head, instead allowing sad and bitter thoughts to enter, reminding him that she would never learn to fancy someone like _him_. And even if by some miracle she did, he was much too dangerous.

"You won't tell her, will you?" Of course he knew that Lily would keep his secret to herself, but he had to be sure, the last thing he needed right now was for Katie to find out about these feelings.

"Don't you worry, I'll keep my lips sealed tight." He shot her a grateful smile as they rounded yet another corner, the portrait of the Fat Lady now coming into view.

The moment the two stepped into the common room, a small laugh echoed from the couch by the lit fireplace. Remus knew that laugh, and a small smile crept up onto his face as it entered his ears; he hadn't heard her laugh like that much since that night. Katie and Sirius were seated on the large sofa, James and Peter on the floor, each leaning against the bottom of the velvet sofa.

Katie was the first to notice them, looking up but not saying anything. She seemed to be contemplating something, looking back down as quickly as she looked up. James saw them next, spotting the two, giving Katie a small nudge with his elbow and a small shake of his head towards the direction of Remus and Lily.

Remus hadn't taken his eyes off of her since they walked in, gathering up as much courage as he could to ask to speak to her. He was walking towards the four determined when she stood up abruptly.

"I need to talk to you." Neither had been expecting a second voice to speak, but it seemed like they both had the same thing in mind.

Katie sighed, walking closer to Remus. "Well, maybe somewhere private?" She was looking around at the multiple students lounging around in different places of the common room.

"Right, how about the dormitory?" She nodded her head quickly, taking a look back at the group near the fire, all of them sporting relieved expressions, James and Sirius with wide smirks and wiggling eyebrows. Katie blushed slightly before turning to Remus and nodding her head towards the boy's dormitory. Both could feel many pairs of eyes on them, and much of the common room was whispering, causing the two to walk at an increased pace.

"Prongs, you reckon they'll finally hug it out like we've been telling them to?"

"Pads, if they don't walk out of that room all nice and fixed up, we're definitely going to lock them in a closet and not let them out until they do—Ow!" Lily had hit him in the back of the head, sending him and Sirius glares as Sirius laughed at James' grouchy expression. "Merlin, Lily, what was that for?"

"Your ways of bringing friendships back together are _extremely_ unorthodox!" She was glaring at him, but there was a slight touch of amusement sparkling in her green eyes.

"Now, now Lily Flower, that is simply the only way that they'll make up if they don't hug it out in there," he said, pointing a finger towards the top of the stairs. He looked back at her with a mischievous grin, expecting her to yell at him for the use of the nickname. He tried hard to keep the shock off of his face when she simply just responded.

"There must be other ways, you know, where they _aren't_ against their will."

"Trust us, Evans. Plus if they actually don't make up, I'll be pulling my hair out. And that's serious." Sirius smirked at her as she turned her glare on him. However the corners of her lips were threatening to turn upwards. Failing at her attempt not to smile, she just wacked him over the head as well, leaving a smirking James and Peter to howl with laughter.

* * *

Stepping into the room, Remus allowed Katie to enter first before closing the door behind him. Katie took a few steps backward, coming to stop as she leaned against the bed post of Remus' bed, the smell of chocolate entering her nostrils. A fond smile slowly made its way into her face as she inhaled the familiar scent. The sound of Remus' footsteps following the closing of the door reminded her why she was here.

Clearing her throat slightly, she prepared herself for the small speech she formulated earlier, but found her words failing her. "It's not your fault, you know. James told me that you felt guilty, about what happened that night, but it's not your fault. It's far from it." The words tumbled out of her lips, seeming to lack the meaning of what she had meant to say.

Remus looked up at her and sighed deeply, the look of guilt once again occupying his features. "But Kate, I hurt you, of course it's my fault. If only, I had some control over the werew– _me,_ that," he said pointing to her covered shoulder, "would never have happened." It seemed both had lost the right words to speak, much of what was coming out of their mouths feeling a tad forced and not at all what they were trying to say. Katie began to grow increasingly frustrated at the awkwardness of the conversation, taking a deep breath as she ran a hand through her hair.

Turning around, she gained as much courage as she could, trying to find the right words to say. "Remus," Katie said, stepping closer to him until she was about a foot away. "Look at me. It's not your fault." His head slowly came up to look at her, hazel and dark brown meeting. The emotions there expressed what their lackluster words couldn't, suddenly giving Remus the slight push he needed to say what he wanted.

He stepped back a bit, a look of guilt and anxiousness in his eyes. "Kate I hurt you! And I-I don't know how I'm supposed to look at you without feeling that guilt because I know that I did that to you. I don't know how I'm supposed to react to knowing that I'm the reason you were sitting in that shack losing blood until you finally became unconscious; you could have died. And th-the scars! I put them there, and they're never going to leave you, they're always going to be there to serve as a reminder to you and I that I'm a monster!" He had stepped away from Katie in his tirade, turning away from her as his eyes filled with tears of guilt and self-hatred.

She stepped closer to him still, raising her voice just enough for him to hear the finality in her voice, without causing her to sound angry. His last words echoed in her head, anger seeping through her veins at the notion that he thought he could ever be a monster. "Remus, you are the farthest thing from a monster! You're anything but. Yes, you wounded me that night, but you know what? You know what you did the moment you learned of what happened? You checked up on me, made sure I was okay, made sure that I was perfectly fine. And afterwards? Yes you stayed away, and as much as I would love to loathe you for it, I can't because you were doing it for me. You stayed away, purely because you wanted to keep me safe and you felt that in doing so, you were making my life better. That tells me that who you are, is the most caring, most loving person I've met, who always just wants the best for others. That is far from what a monster is."

Katie stepped right behind him, pausing before placing a hand on his shoulder tentatively. She turned him so he was facing her, his eyes downcast blinking back tears. Any anger that she'd felt previously ebbed away as she caught a glimpse of his glassy eyes. "Remus, look at me," she said placing a hand on his cheek and lifting his head up slowly to look at her. His eyes were glossy, unshed tears threatening to spill out, and she guessed that hers was the same. This time, his eyes weren't filled with guilt, but instead with that special emotion that she could never figure out.

"You're not a monster." She whispered to him softly, smiling as she did. Remus looked at her for a moment before placing his arms around her, engulfing her in a warm hug, pulling her to him. He buried his head in her thick, brown locks, letting a few tears spill out. She circled her arms around his waist, burying her head in his chest. Scents of roses and chocolate filled their noses, each letting out a small smile.

"Thank you, Kate. This means a lot to me, more than you'll ever know," he said, lifting a hand up to cradle her head, stoking her soft strands of hair, causing Katie to smile wider into his chest.

After what seemed like forever, the two separated, but Katie still kept her hands on his shoulders. "Look, I know that you think that staying away from me is what's best for me, but know that I will literally go insane if those awkward conversations in the library continue any longer." She shot him a cheeky grin, causing him to chuckle lightly.

"I'll keep that in mind if I ever think about avoiding you again."

Katie reached up and gave him another hug, keeping her arms around his neck, as she sighed. "You're still Remus. What happened and what you are doesn't change any of that. You'll still be my best friend, and I'm with you through everything. You know that don't you?"

The statement made a wide grin spread across Remus' face, a warm feeling bubbling in his stomach. He never thought anyone could ever make him hate the werewolf less, but it seemed that Katie had done it. "Of course, Kate."

Detracting her arms from Remus' neck, she hesitated before tipping her toes slightly and planting a small kiss to his cheek. A blush rushed to both their faces, Katie stepping away and turning before he could catch a look at her reddened face. She sat down on the edge of his bed, the smell of chocolate rushing to her sense of smell once again.

"You reckon they miss us down there?" Katie looked up at Remus from her position on the bed, snapping him out of his slight daze.

"I bet they're too busy arguing or ripping each other apart to notice," he chuckled slightly, taking a seat next to her on his bed.

Katie gingerly lay her head down on his shoulder, not realizing until now just how much she'd missed him and their friendship over the week.

"Remus?" Her tone was quiet, soft even, barely above a whisper.

"Yeah?"

She lift her head up from his shoulder, downcasting her eyes as she played with a small frayed thread on her cloak. "If you don't mind me asking," she stopped to look up at him, catching the slight shake of his head telling her to continue. "Well, I was wondering, when did you—well, get bitten?"

A look of pain replaced Remus' calm expression and Katie immediately regret asking, feeling insensitive, already going to tell him that it was stupid of her to ask when he spoke. His voice was quiet, with hints of fear and pain, almost like it was when the two first met.

"I was four, three days before my fifth birthday. My parents and I, we were all fast asleep when he came into my bedroom window, thrashing. Of course, being a young boy, I screamed for my mum and dad. He kept getting closer, and I didn't know what to do, so I sat there, crying."

Remus brought his hand up to the large scar across his face as he continued. "He slashed me first, across the face, it's how I got this. There was still time then, he hadn't bitten me yet, so I wasn't a werewolf quite yet. I could hear my father's footsteps on the stairs and I-I thought he was going to make it in time, be able to keep the large beast away from me. But then he bit me," He lift the right sleeve of his sweater, revealing the faded scars of sharp tooth marks.

"He bit me, and that changed my life forever. My parents searched hard and wide for any cure, but it was hopeless. I was never meant to go to Hogwarts in the first place, until Dumbledore showed up at our cottage one day, and told my parents I was allowed to go to school here. I'm extremely grateful for it." A soft smile graced his face as he finished his story.

Katie was absolutely speechless. Hearing him tel the story of how he got bit, the emotion was so overly present that she felt a warm feeling, knowing that he trusted her enough to tell her. There was also an overwhelming feeling of sadness and a sudden want to protect the boy sitting across from her from everything terrible in the world.

Not knowing the right words to say, she simply placed an arm around his shoulders, leaning her cheek against his right arm. "I'm glad that you could." Katie looked up at him slightly as he turned his head just enough to look down at her, a genuine smile on his face, his eyes shining with that special emotion, causing a slight fluttering sensation in Katie's stomach and a large grin to spread across her face.

Their faces were merely inches apart; she could see every detail of his facial features, from the honey-gold specs in his seemingly dull brown eyes, to the light scarring from the claw marks he'd received so long ago. Absentmindedly, she brought her hand up to caress the biggest scar prominent on his face.

"They aren't very pretty, I know," he attempted to smile and stir a slight laugh from her, but the evident self-pity and self-dislike in his eyes stopped her from doing so.

"I think they're beautiful Remus. They're a part of you, and you shouldn't be ashamed of who you are."

Remus smiled slightly as Katie pulled back and rest her head back on his shoulder. "My mother said something like that to me once, when I was young."

"Your mother sounds lovely Remus. What's she like?"

"She has beautiful honey-colored hair and the brightest brown eyes, it was what drew my father to her when he first met her, her eyes. She's the kindest person I've met and she's quite the dreamer." He looked down at her to find that she was smiling.

And they continued like that, just talking about anything and everything because they never realized just how much they took their friendship for granted until it was on the brink of collapse. They shared stories of their childhood, and Remus had obliged to tell her stories of some old pranks the Marauders pulled that Katie could never get out of James. With his secret no longer a divider between them, their level of trust felt renewed and at a higher level.

It wasn't until her head began to fall slowly forward as he told her the story of the 'Talking Chocolate' that he realized that she had fallen asleep. Her eyes were closed, causing a worrisome look to appear on Remus' face as he noticed the deep bags present underneath her eyes. How much sleep had she gotten?

He was about to shake her awake when he checked his watch—an accidental matching present from the year before from Katie—which read 10:38 pm. So instead, he picked her up easily with the help of his wolfish strength, careful not to wake her, placing her down onto his bed with her head rested comfortably on his linen pillows.

Remus watched with a smile as her small body curled up into a ball, her head muzzling slightly into the pillows further. He quickly grabbed the wool blanket located at the edge of his bed and draped it over her sleeping form. Stepping back a few steps, he took one last look at her—her chocolate brown locks spilling gracefully over the pillows—before taking a seat on the floor, leaning against the frame of his bed.

He was in the middle of finishing his potions essay when the rest of the Marauders, led by James at the head, came bumbling in, each of them laughing as if their life depended on it. Remus was about to tell them to shut it when James' laughter stopped abruptly, causing the other two to stop as well, as his eyes landed on the sleeping figure on the bed that was definitely not Remus. His eyes traveled back and forth from Remus' position from the ground to Katie's sleeping form on Remus' bed—his eyes sparkling with mischief as a smirk graced his features.

"So, did you two—hug it out like I said?" James' finger was was moving back and forth between the two, looking very amused.

"Oh Prongs, I reckon they did _more_ than hug it out," Sirius snickered, ducking right on time as Remus aimed to throw a book at his head. "Oi! Moony be nice!"

Remus stood up quickly, haphazardly placing his nearly-finished essay onto his night stand, careful not to spill his inkwell in the process. "Pads if only I could punch you without waking Kate up." He shook his head wistfully as he shot a jokingly annoyed look at him.

"So are you dropping the 'Keep Away From Her Because I Love Her Too Much And I'm Too Dangerous' plan now Moony?" James had walked over to his trunk, dropping his tie onto it, glancing back at Remus as he moved to take off his socks as well.

"I don't—love her," Remus said, poking his head out of his trunk.

"Sure you don't," James retorted back, shaking his head and chuckling. He stopped fiddling with the collar of his button up to watch Remus carefully with a sly smile. "But Amortentia likes to think otherwise."

Remus' head shot up quickly, the blush on his cheeks betraying his embarrassment. "I don't—," he began to say but was cut off by Sirius.

"Roses, huh Moony?" Sirius wiggled his eyebrows at him as he threw his cloak messily onto the floor surrounding his bed.

Remus stares him, before his eyes darted between James and Sirius. "Prongs did you—," he attempted to say, but was cut off once again.

"Why of course Moony, no secrets between the Marauders! But wait, get this," James grinned widely and Remus immediately got the feeling that he would dislike the words that would come out of James mouth. "Our dear Katie here smelled something particular in her Amortentia. What was it boys?"

Peter raised his hand slightly, as if James was actually a professor. "Didn't she smell chocolate?"

"Why you are correct Wormtail! And who here reeks of the stuff?"

Sirius played along, looking contemplative and rubbing his fingers on his chin thoughtfully. "Let me guess. Maybe it's Snivellus? No, the greasy git smells like rotten tomatoes. Myself?" He pauses his sentence to take a whiff from his arm before shaking his head. "No, I smell like masculine cologne. Oh wait! Prongs I've got it! Is it—Moony?"

"Correct you are Pads!"

"Guys, she could just like the smell of chocolate," Remus said exasperated, taking a seat on his trunk. But the amusement and slight blush on his face was prominent.

"You go and keep telling yourself that Moony."

"Shove off you lot. She's sleeping, you could wake her." His eyes swiveled to the small petite figure, a small smile gracing his face.

James had walked over to Sirius as Remus looked over at Katie, smirking and nodding his head at the pair.

"He's so in love," he whispered, not loud enough to wake his best friend but just enough that he knew Remus would hear.

"I can hear you Prongs." His gaze was now averted to the two, who were giggling like school girls, separating only when a pillow came hurdling at their heads.

"Moony! Careful there, you might wake Katie!" He however was too busy snorting in laughter to notice the shoe that had been thrown his way, knocking him straight in the face, leaving the three other Marauders in a fit of attempted quiet—albeit unsuccessful—laughter.

 ** _Here's some angsty fluff for y'all! I hope you guys liked the whole James/Katie and Lily/Remus friendship scenes because they're honestly really fun to write and my heart melts for their friendships okay._**

 ** _Also, for those of you thinking that maybe Remus was OOC, I'd like to think that'd he would react badly to hurting someone as werewolf (in this case it's one of his best friends and someone he has growing feelings for) because one, it's stated many times that he hates his werewolf side and I think him hurting someone as a werewolf would just fuel that, and on Pottermore, it's stated that his biggest fear was killing someone in his werewolf form so I think this was a reasonable reaction from him._**


	9. Girl Talks and “Sod off!”

The sun had barely risen, just peaking over the large grove of trees located in the Forbidden Forest, casting miniscule shadows over the grounds of Hogwarts when Katie began to stir awake. She could feel that it was decently early the moment her brain registered that it was time to wake, seeing as she always had to wake up early on the mornings where quidditch games were scheduled.

Still drowsy and having not opened her eyes quite yet, she sat up slowly from her bed, stretching and yawning as she did so. There was an odd smell of chocolate entering her senses—her bed always smelled of roses and honey suckles from her shampoo and body wash—but she was much too drowsy to dwell on it. Rubbing her eyes slowly, she began to squint at the dark room, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the difference in light.

The room looked rather messy, much messier than usual. Turning her head to her left, she expected to see red hair peeking out from the large comforters, messy and spread in all directions. To her utter shock and surprise, she instead found James Potter, already bound in his quidditch uniform, leaning against his bedpost, watching her with an amused expression.

She jumped slightly, eyes wide with confusion. "Merlin, James. You scared me. What are you doing here? It's much too early for me to be late for quidditch—on second thought, how'd you manage to get up here? The stairwell to the girls' dormitory is cursed for boys." Her lines of speech were rather rushed, Katie still having been quite surprised with his presence. She squinted at him, just barely able to make out his features in the darkness of the room. She could just make out the small smirk forming on his face as he answered her.

"Why yes Kate, it would be rather difficult for me to get to the girls' dormitories. But you see, we're not _in_ the girls' dormitories."

Swiveling her head around the room, Katie began to notice the drastic differences from the dormitories that she usually knew. Sirius was laid on his bed sideways on his bed, blankets kicked to the floor and his arms in awkward positions. There was a lump on the bed nearest to the door; Katie guessed that it was Peter on that bed. Upon inspecting the room, the realization suddenly dawned on her that she was sitting on Remus' bed. The smell of chocolate made sense now, but she hadn't remembered much from last night, seeing as she became extremely exhausted nearing the end of the night.

"Where's Remus?"

Katie could see James just open his mouth to answer when the door to Katie's left suddenly opened. Remus stepped out, his hair damp and messy, landing in wet strands on his face. He was dressed—well, nearly. He was sporting a white button up, only the very bottom button being done. Her eyes unintentionally grazed over his surprisingly well toned chest, not too muscular—she didn't take Remus for a very muscular guy—but defined enough for people who happened to see to notice. She noticed the variety of scars on his chest, in an array of sizes, big and small. However, she immediately withdrew her eyes when a slight cough from James broke whatever trance she'd undergone, realizing that she had begun to stare.

Blushing pink, Katie was quick to ask Remus a question—avoiding meeting his eyes from embarrassment—to keep James from cracking any teasing remarks. "Did I fall asleep last night?"

Gaining enough courage to look up at him again, she trained her eyes on his face to keep her eyes from wondering elsewhere, noticing that Remus was smiling goofily. "Oh right yes. You fell asleep last night and I would've woken you but it was rather late so I just let you sleep on my bed," he replied, looking as if he was trying hard not to stop smiling, but failing as the corners of his lips were turned upwards.

"Where did you sleep?" Remus suddenly blushed red, so much that even in the darkened room, Katie could see the slight tinge of his cheeks. He began to rub the back of his head in nervousness, leaving Katie to wonder why he suddenly became so anxious. It wasn't until she mulled over what she said in her mind that she could spot where his source of nervousness was coming from.

"Oh no no, I hadn't meant to ask like that. I trust you, Remus don't worry. I just feel guilty if you were forced to sleep somewhere uncomfortable because of me."

He just shrugged it off, walking as he began to button up the rest of his shirt. "Don't worry, the floor was rather nice."

Katie kicked some of the blankets off slightly, extending her head just enough to spot the small bundle of blankets and pillows on the ground. "Remus, you didn't have to sleep on the floor. You could've woken me, or you could have just slept on the bed, I wouldn't have minded." After realizing what she had just let slip out, the blush on her cheeks deepened, keeping her train of sight strictly on the blanket spread messily on her legs. Remus' blush deepened as he buried his head in his trunk.

"Oh I have no doubt about that Kate." Katie and Remus both turned their heads to James—Remus lifting his head from his trunk and Katie lifting her eyes from the small painting of an apple on the wall in which she trained her eyes on when Remus had walked to his trunk—both seemingly having forgotten he was present in the room. He was smirking at the both of them, not even bothering to hide how amused he was.

Choosing to ignore him, Katie kicked off the remaining blankets on her body, swinging her legs off the bed. "Right then, I ought to go change for quidditch."

She stood up, running her fingers through her hair in an attempt to look more presentable. "Oh, and Kate, don't forget that Alice is playing with a sore thumb today, so most of the time I'll be passing you the quaffle," James said as she began to walk in the direction of the door.

Nodding her head, she looked as if she was about to beeline for the the door, but she instead stopped at where Remus was standing on her way out. "Thank you, for last night," she said, giving him a smile.

"It wasn't much of a hassle, you're rather light." He shot her a grin, becoming suddenly overcome with shock when she stood up slightly and wrapped her arms around him quickly. A goofy smile was still on his lips when she scurried out of the of the room without a look back at the room.

"Why Moony, if I didn't know any better, I would say that you might fancy my best friend." Remus turned to glare at James, whose smirk remained unwavering, lounged lazily on his bed.

Remus pulled a sweater over his head, only his light brown hair sticking out when a muffled reply came from within the sweater. "Well Prongs, it's a bloody good thing that—," he said pulling the jacket over his head, his hair messy, "—you know better."

The girls' dormitory was decently quiet when Katie had finally made it up the trudge of the long stairs. Most of the girls were still asleep soundly in their beds with the exception of Alice, whose bed was empty as the shower ran when she entered.

Seeing as there was no use in trying to get some more sleep, Katie walked quietly to her trunk, not wanting to wake any of the girls but doubting that she could even if she tried.

She was still rummaging around in her trunk for her protective gear when the door to the bathroom opened to Alice clothed only with the towel draped over her body. Though they had spent less time with each other since she began dating Frank Longbottom, they were still very good friends and had a definite comfort with one another.

"Your bed was empty when I woke up and you weren't in the bathroom, so if you don't mind me asking where you were?" She was standing behind the red drapes surrounding her bed, watching Katie with curiosity.

Not bothering to look up, Katie shrugged as she easily lied about the real reason as to why she wasn't present. "Oh nothing much, James just told me to see him early to discuss any play changes for the game."

"Right, hope that my thumb will be well enough to get at least a goal in." She finished dressing and walked over to her bed as Katie just nodded, her head still buried in her trunk. "Katie," the tone of her voice had changed, a softer, gentler tone. "Are you feeling alright? Yesterday I know that James and Remus were freaked out over you disappearing and I can't help but feel guilty that I haven't spent much with either you or Lily enough to know if everything is alright with you two." Katie slowly lifted her head from her trunk, taking a glance at Alice and the guilty expression on her face. Standing up and leaving her gear on the floor near her trunk she got up and took a seat next to Alice, wrapping an arm around her.

"Don't you go around feeling guilty, it's perfectly understandable," Alice opened her mouth to interject but Katie put up a finger to hush her. "You and Frank are still in that phase where you two only want to be with each other, and that's okay. I'm not saying that we don't miss you an awful lot, but we understand, Lily and I. Take your time and don't worry about us."

Alice smiled thankfully at her before taking on a confused look. "But Katie isn't there a muggle saying 'Mates before dates' or something of the sort?"

"Alice, you do you know that you're asking a pureblood about a muggle saying right?" She gave the short-haired female beside her a quizzical look with a hint of amusement in her eyes. Alice let out a slight laugh, her head bending forward as she shook with little ripples of laughter.

"Right, you do have a point."

"How about this? Let's ditch the boys for breakfast, I'll tell James to sod off and you can tell Frank that you'll eat with us, just you, me, and Lily." Her eyes lit up slowly like it always did when she thought of an idea she was fond of, leaving Alice to just grin and say yes to her plan because she couldn't say no to Katie when she got all excited, not that she would say no anyway.

Standing up, Katie quickly opened the window with a flip of her wand before turning back to Alice with a grin.

Clapping her hands excitedly, a large grin graced her face. "Now all we have to do is wake Lily up."

Alice looked at her as if se had transformed into a wild animal. "Katie have you gone mad? It's impossible to wake her up if she doesn't want to," Alice said standing up, still staring at Katie.

"Yes, but it's what we do to attempt to wake her up that's fun." Alice watched as a smirk graced Katie's face, almost identical to James and she wondered how they weren't related in any way.

Alice leaned on the post of her bed, crossing her arms, looking much like a mother watching her baby. "I think you've been spending _way_ too much time with James." She continued to watch in amusement as Katie zipped around the room, curious as to where this sudden burst of energy has come from.

"Alice, I've practically been with James twenty-four-seven since we were four. He's rubbed off on me over the years." Her head was in her trunk again, shoveling through the mess of stuff packed inside, making her voice a tinge muffled. Standing straight, her hands held an assortment of quidditch gear and her uniform was in her mouth.

"I'm just gonna change now," she attempted to say as she pointed her hands toward the bathroom, but the fabric in her mouth made it sound more like "Um muss gunny fanck now."

Alice chuckled as she watched as Katie made her way to the bathroom, clunking all her gear with her.

Katie stepped into the bathroom, dropping her gear on the floor the minute she managed to close the door. Now that she thought of it, it would probably have been a better idea to just put on her gear in the dormitory, seeing as there was much more space there. She didn't bother for a shower, considering that she would be taking a shower after the match anyway, opting to put her hair in a messy braid.

She didn't take too long with putting on her uniform, but she took one look at the gear lying at her feet before picking them up as she dragged them back out into the dormitory.

Alice was sitting on her bed, bent over as she was putting on her shin guards, when Katie trudged back in. "Too hard to put on in the bathroom huh?"

"Shut up." Katie grinned at her as she hastily put on her gear as well, standing up and patting herself once she finished.

"Right. Now to wake Lily." A mischievous smirk was on her face, leaving Alice to wonder why she wasn't a Marauder. "Would cold water do the trick?" She looked to Alice who merely shrugged.

"It's worth a try."

Katie nearly ran to the bathroom, tripping over a dropped tie on her way there, leaving Alice in a fit of giggles. She strode into the bathroom, quickly conjuring a small cup and filling it with water, a lesson from third year that she had become exceptionally good at. Turning to head out of the bathroom, she stopped suddenly, deciding to place a cold charm on the water to make sure it never warmed up to room temperature. Stepping back into the dormitory, a triumphant smile on her face, she quickly walked over to Lily's bed, careful not to drop the contents of the cup.

She grinned at Alice, who was sat on her bed watching in amusement, before dropping the contents of the cup quickly onto the redhead. Her reaction to the icy, cold water was instant, sitting up instantly, almost faster than lightning, letting out a loud shriek. Her auburn hair was sprawled over her face as some strands stood out, soaked with water. Bringing her hands up to her face, she slowly parted her hair, eyes closed at first before she turned and glared at the girl laughing at her bedside.

"Kate I swear, if you _ever_ do that _ever_ again, I will slap you harder than I did Potter." She continued to glare at Katie, who in turn, continued to laugh. Alice was clutching her sides from laughter in the background and since Lily's shriek had woken up the entire dormitory, the rest of the girls joined in with a fit of giggles.

"Lils, I reckon you woke the entire school with that screech."

"Shove off, I'm going back to bed." She was already making a move to lie back down when Katie caught her by the shoulders not allowing her or settle back into the bed.

"Oh no you don't, that water is going to stay cold and won't dry until you get off your arse. Besides you, Alice, and I are gonna have some bonding time before James forces us onto the quidditch pitch."

"Then that's like 30 minutes Kate. What 'bonding' can we do in 30 minutes?" She groaned, trying to fall back down into bed but Katie's arms on her shoulder kept her in place.

Katie rolled her eyes slightly as Lily glared at her. "Come on, it'll be breakfast and while at breakfast we can talk about whatever in the bloody hell we feel like talking about. That's bonding so get up." She was now pushing Lily off of the bed, but to no use and just ended up laying down on her best friend.

"Fine, fine just get off of me." Her voice was slightly muffled due to the fact that Katie was still lying on top of her. Katie grinned, quickly hopping off of her best friend as the redhead mumbled something, reluctantly getting out of bed.

"Kate?"

"Lily?"

All heads towards the door of the dormitory from which two male voices seemed to have come from. Katie walked over to the door, sticking her head out just enough to see Remus and James at the bottom of the girls' staircase, concerned expressions on their faces. A look of relief replaced it when Katie stuck her head out, seemingly unharmed.

"Are you alright?" Remus was looking at her, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Yes Remus, we're totally fine. We were just waking Lily up." She grinned at both of them, waving a quick goodbye before closing the door. Upon the closure of the door, the two young men just exchanged bizarre looks with each other, before looking back up in confusion.

"Lily, are you almost done in there?" Katie yelled. "It's nearly eight!"

A grouchy voice sounded from the other side of the bathroom. "Sod off, Kate I just got in here. Give me five minutes."

Lily stepped out of the bathroom 10 minutes later, the smell of her strawberry shampoo wafting into the dormitory, her hair slightly damp, and her fully dressed in a pair of worn out jeans and a green sweater.

She flopped down onto her bed, her bright red hair sprawling into a slight fan over the sheets. "Alright, now what did you two wake me up so early for?"

"Bonding Lily, bonding." Katie smirked as Lily groaned from her bed standing up, her shoulders slumping.

"Fine, since I'm not gonna be able to get any more sleep, how about let's go," she noted, her voice seeping of impatience. She tapped her foot impatiently against the floor as Katie grinned sweetly at her, sending her an innocent look, before ushering her and Alice out the door.

"So, Alice, do you want to go and tell Frank?" The three had finally reached the bottom of the stairs, the common room now slightly filled as students milled around coming in and out of the portrait door.

"Right, yeah. I'll try to be quick!" She was already making her way to the boys' dormitories, throwing her last sentence over her shoulder. The redhead and brunette simply looked at each other before sitting down on the large, red sofa situated near the center of the room.

Katie sat down to the left side of the couch, tucking her legs underneath her, watching as Lily to took a seat close to her, leaning back into the cushions. She turned her head slightly to the left, just enough that she could talk to Katie clearly. A teasing yet curious smile was present on her face.

"So did you and Remus make up yesterday?"

Katie turned more to her right, snuggling her side into the soft pillow cushions. "How'd you know we were arguing?"

"Come on, Kate. It's pretty obvious when you two aren't speaking to each other, seeing as you're so closely knit." Katie just raised an eyebrow at her, clearly seeing that she was only telling half of the truth. "And he might have told me about it yesterday when we went looking for you," she said, sighing.

Katie's eyebrows shot up upon hearing that statement, knowing that telling Lily about the argument would have to mean that he told her about his hidden secret, "He told you—what the argument was about?" She spoke carefully, not wanting to reveal too much just in case her suspicions were wrong.

"I know what you're thinking Kate. Yes, he did tell me, about his—," she paused, looking slightly around at the several students in the room. "—problem, let's say. I knew long before that though so he didn't have much to worry about."

Katie just nodded thoughtfully, her eyes trained on the dancing reddish-yellow flames of the fireplace.

Lily's soft voice snapped her partially out of her daze. "He cares about you a lot you know, Remus." She turned her head towards Lily again, not saying anything but nodding slightly, telling her to continue.

"It was just something I noticed last night, he—well, you could just see it, how much he cares about you." She didn't elaborate, instead just leaving on that note, making everything just seem incomplete.

Lily watched as a small smile made its way onto Katie's face as she buried her head into the cushions before lifting her head to look at the fire again, the smile still in place. There was a slight tinge in her cheeks, and a different look in her eyes when she turned her attention back to the fire. Lily smiled when she saw it, it was small, but it was there, the look in her eyes. It was the same look that Remus' eyes held when he looked at the brunette.

The two just stay there for the following minutes, the smile never leaving Katie's face as her eyes continue to stare at the billowing flames. It isn't until Lily's direction of focus changes from a loose strand in her sweater to something behind Katie that the silence is broken. From behind the two, James Potter and Remus Lupin were making their way down the stairs, looking exactly as they did 15 minutes ago, except this time with Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew in tow.

"Well, good morning to you two. I'm glad to see that neither of you died earlier." James had hopped off the last step, approaching the two, the three boys following along behind him. He began his sentence by addressing both girls but upon reaching the couch, was smirking at just Lily.

"Sod off, Potter," Lily said, but she wasn't angry, rather the opposite instead, a teasing grin present on her face. This, in turn, seemed to make James' eyes shine a little brighter, the corners of his lips turning up higher.

Katie turned her head from her two best friends, a grin on her face from seeing them get along, shifting her attention instead to the three boys behind James. "Did you see Alice on your way down?"

All three simultaneously looked up towards the scarlet staircase, looking at each other before looking back at her, all shaking their heads no. She just nodded absentmindedly, propping her legs on the small table in front of the sofa. "You four can go on ahead, Lily, Alice, and I are going to try to get some bonding in before James over here starts yelling at us to hurry up."

"Isn't talking to each other bonding?" James turned to her, a confused expression on his face.

Katie and Lily rolled their eyes at the same time, causing the four boys to look alarmingly at one another. "Yes, James. Talking is bonding."

James looked to the three boys behind him, sending them a look before looking back at the girls on the couch. "Well, don't you three talk? Why's bonding such a big deal then?"

"Because we're girls, and _bonding_ sounds special. Plus we need a day off from you idiots," Katie said, smiling sweetly at them.

"Sounds like a load of rubbish to me," Sirius whispered to Peter and Remus, who seemed as if they were going to agree with their long-haired friend, but decided against it when they caught the look Katie and Lily were giving them.

James however paid no attention to the looks, powering on. "Oi! You knew what you were getting into when you decided to be friends with me."

"I was four, James. _Four,"_ Katie sighed, chuckling a bit as she leaned her head back.

"Well, Kate, you were 11 when you met me." Remus spoke up, a teasing glint in his chocolate brown eyes.

Katie smiled slightly, a glint in her hazel eyes. "See Remus, you—and Peter—aren't too bad. Granted, I actually like you two from time to time." Remus laughed slightly at her jab, Peter with a shy smile on his face.

Sirius inched closet to James, whispering something into his ear. "From time to time? More like all the time." The two snickered quietly, straightening their stances and smiling innocently when Katie and Lily turn to look at them, eyeing them carefully. The two smirked at each other, nodding their heads simultaneously, before each grabbing a pillow from beside them, throwing them at James and Sirius respectively.

James was able to duck in time, but Sirius unfortunately could not, seeing as Katie had nearly perfect precise aim from her years as a chaser.

The pillow made contact with Sirius' face, causing everyone to laugh loudly as he blinked rapidly, trying to get his sense of balance back, tipping over a bit. Leaning against the arm of the chaise beside the sofa, he regained his balance, rubbing a hand on his forehead, shooting Katie a glare, to which she just smiled sweetly. "That hurt you know. Prongs, you should stop training her all that much, the strength of that arm is getting mighty strong."

"You're just saying that because you know that I could easily beat you in quidditch one-on-one." A mischievous grin was on her face, an eyebrow raised, daring him to challenge her statement.

He stood up straight, a cocky grin on his face, but there was an obvious look of doubt in his grey orbs. "Oh yeah? Well, we can see about that. Tomorrow at the quidditch pitch. 1 o'clock." Katie was about to retort, a teasing look already on her face when Remus spoke.

"Pads, save yourself the embarrassment. Know when you're beat." He was shaking his head at their antics an amused smile graving his features as he looked between the two.

Sirius crosses his arms, pouting slightly. "So you're on her side then, Moony?"

"Well, have you _seen_ her play quidditch," he decarled matter-of-factually. Remus motioned his arm slightly in Katie's direction, his voice full of admiration. Katie reddened a bit at the compliment, shooting Remus a grateful smile. James, Lily, Sirius, and Peter just watched them, knowing looks on their faces.

"And she wonders why everyone thinks they fancy each other," James whispered to Sirius, who nodded in agreement, as they continued to watch the two broke their gazes as Peter coughed slightly.

"Wormtail, how could you disrupt such a beautiful moment?" James was looking at Peter with wide eyes, Peter shrinking a bit bashfully under his gaze, mumbling a quick sorry. Sirius beside him was wiping imaginary tears from his eyes.

Katie rolled her eyes at them as Remus just chuckled, already having gotten used to their teasing. "Shove off you lot. Go on and have breakfast, Lily and I are still waiting for Alice." Katie stood up from the sofa, grabbing a hold of James and Sirius' shoulders, ushering them towards the door despite their groans and complaints. Remus just followed after her, beckoning Peter along as Katie shoved the two out of the portrait hole, slamming the door closed.

"Careful Kate, you might break the door. Who knows what Mcgonagall would do to you if you did." Remus was walking up behind her, amusement written all over his face, with Peter at his heels.

Katie leaned against the wall, propping her arm up as she looked to him. "Remus, as much as I love your sense of humor, you might want to get your arse out there before they come back in."

He smirked slightly at her, tapping the side of his head. "Right, right, _bonding_. I'll try to keep them at bay so you can enjoy your girl time or whatever."

Katie grinned at him, causing Peter to cough once for the second time. "Thanks, Remus."

"You know, Padfoot and Prongs might actually have a point with you two." Both eyes turned to look at him, to which he stepped back a little, overwhelmed.

Before he could open his mouth to apologize however, Remus had taken him by the shoulders, gently pushing him out the portrait hole, sending Katie an apologetic look before he disappeared outside with the rest of them.

Katie stood there a second more, confused in a way, not about the events that happened, but what she felt about them—or more accurately, a certain marauder. It isn't until she saw someone approaching the door that she finally walks back to the sofa, shaking the thoughts from her head for another time. Lily just sits calmly, having been keeping an eye on Katie the entire time she stood at the door, not moving.

"I hate to say it, but they do have a point." The redhead grinned as Katie turned to glare at her.

Katie could only muster up a slight glare, still feeling slightly contemplative about how she felt. "Oh shove off Lils." Lily just continued to grin innocently at the brunette, laughing as she scowled at her.

A voice from behind them interrupted their conversation from continuing, much to Katie's relief. "Sorry it took me so long." Both turned to look at the staircase to find Alice making her way quickly down the stairs, slightly out of breath. "Frank was in the shower when I got to the dormitory and just decided to wait for him to finish before I told him." She took one long breath, finally stepping off of the scarlet staircase, sinking into the nearest chaise.

"It's fine, it gave us the opportunity to drive the boys away."

Alice sat up straighter, leaning an elbow against on of the arms of the chaise. "Really? Well, then we killed two birds with one stone it seems."

 ** _I know this chapter isn't very entertaining but I wanted to showcase some friendships so here you go! Also, I'm sorry for the lack of Peter scenes, I just don't know where to give him lines without him being OOC. There's also a lack of Peter scenes because the story is mainly told from Katie's perspective, and her and Peter aren't particularly close, they aren't close at all actually, which is why he only really has lines when it's just the Marauders in the the scene._**


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